Millennial voters are acutely aware of her flaws, but as the race drags on many sympathize with Clinton as they see her in a different light than when the race started. “She’s not a perfect candidate,” said Amelia Yousey, a 21-year-old from Upstate New York, who was a fan of Sanders, but plans to vote for Clinton. “She’s been guarded in a way that hasn’t helped her, but I think that’s partly a reaction to how much criticism she’s faced.”
Jonathan Rezach, a 27-year-old from California, once worried that Clinton was too cozy with corporations, but says he has since become more of a realist. “Wall street and big banks finance a lot of our world and are necessary institutions,” he said. When Clinton came under attack for her Wall Street speeches, Rezach looked into the paid speaking industry and concluded there’s nothing particularly sinister about it. “She did a job, and she got paid for it,” he said, “I don’t think doing a job necessarily makes you corrupt.”
Millennial voters aren’t only voting for Clinton because of Trump. She may not be as thrilling a candidate as they might have wanted, but Clinton converts have found things to like about her all the same. “I’d characterize her as the smartest girl in the class,” said Cameron Strickland, a 26-year-old from North Carolina who supported Sanders during the primary. Now, some younger voters lament that everyone else seems to give her such a hard time.“She just seems so intelligent, I think it’s a shame that people can’t get past sort of how boring she is to see that she’s extremely prepared,” Strickland added.
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