Poll: Many young Americans would try to avoid the draft if it was brought back

Three in 10 (31%) male Millennials say that they would “try to avoid being conscripted into the armed forces.” Since all males between ages 18 and 25 must enroll in the US draft, this group is the most likely to be impacted by selective service. Women and older generations were more likely to select “Not Applicable – I have good reason to believe the armed forces would not try to conscript me (e.g. because I am too old, have a disability).”

Taking into account the eligibility difference, older generations were less likely to indicate that they would try to avoid the draft: just 13 percent of male Gen Xers and 7 percent of male Baby Boomers say they would try to circumvent conscription. About one in five male Millennials (23%), male Gen Xers (18%) and male Baby Boomers (20%) say they would not try to avoid being conscripted into the armed forces.