Democrats outnumber Republicans 6-to-1 among college graduation speakers, report finds
The College Fix reviewed public statements and donation records to determine political leanings of graduation speakers
By Rachel del Guidice Fox News
Published May 18, 2026 5:11pm EDT
Democrats outnumbered Republicans more than 6-to-1 among commencement speakers at top U.S. colleges this year, according to a new report examining graduation ceremonies at elite universities across the country.
The College Fix found that Democratic or Democratic-leaning speakers made up 86% of partisan commencement speakers at schools ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s top 100 universities.
"The Fix reviewed public statements and donation records to determine the political leanings of speakers," The College Fix reported Friday. "The numbers only include the speakers at either the main commencement ceremony, or if there are multiple events, the undergraduate ceremonies. Other speakers did not publicly indicate a political leaning and were counted as not applicable in the analysis."
A report from The College Fix found Democratic commencement speakers outnumbered Republican speakers by a 6-to-1 margin at top U.S. colleges. (Getty Images)
The six Republican or right-leaning commencement speakers that The College Fix identified include Arthur Brooks, former president of the American Enterprise Institute, who gave Vanderbilt University’s commencement address on May 7; Dario Gil, undersecretary for science at the Department of Energy under President Donald Trump, gave the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute commencement address on May 16; and former University of Texas quarterback and NFL player Colt McCoy gave The University of Texas at Austin’s commencement address on May 9.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/democrats-outnumber-republicans-6-1-among-college-graduation-speakers-report-finds
