Kamala Harris tells Gen-Z voters she will work to earn their support

Presumptive United States Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris, pledged to earn the votes of young people as she tries to harness a new explosion of energy among the younger generation.

In a virtual address on Saturday to attendees of a summit in Atlanta organised by the liberal Gen Z-led organisation, Voters of Tomorrow, she assured them their voice will be heard.

“We know young voters will be key, and we know your vote cannot be taken for granted. It must be earned, and that is exactly what we will do,” said Harris.

Youth-led organisations had warned for months that President Joe Biden had a problem with young voters, pleading with him to refocus on the issues most important to them or risk losing their votes.

Since he dropped out of the November presidential race and endorsed Harris, young people have flooded social media in support of her.

"Your generation is leading on the most important issues of our time. In this moment, we then each face a question: what kind of country do we want to live in,” she asked young people at the summit.

“A country of freedom, compassion, and the rule of law. Or a country of chaos, fear and hate? Here's the thing, we each have the power to answer this question."

This week a New York Times/Siena poll found Harris up 18 points over Republican nominee, Donald Trump, among young voters under 30.