(INDIANAPOLIS) -- If all politics is local, as the old saying goes, a pair of identical twins in Indiana proves that those local politics often start as a family affair -- and don't have to become uncivil.
Nick and Nathan Roberts may look exactly alike, but the 25-year-old brothers and members of the next generation of America’s civic leaders are anything but identical when it comes to their politics.
"From the time we were younger, he ended up in more right wing circles on the internet," Nick said of his brother in an interview with ABC News Live PRIME. "I was in more of just more liberal circles. I don't know what happened."
They still live together with their grandparents, sharing a love of dogs, books and desire to travel the world. But that's where the similarities end.
Nick Roberts, a diehard Democrat, is an Indianapolis city-county councilor and one of the youngest elected officials in the country.
Nathan Roberts, who identifies as a MAGA Republican, founded an Indiana political advocacy group last year and is a state organizer for Turning Point, the organization founded by Charlie Kirk.
"Our dad was conservative and our mom was liberal," Nathan Roberts said. "I guess those are good examples of our family being divided."
The Roberts twins, both college dropouts, are also Gen Z political outliers. More American twentysomethings identify as independents than any other group of adults, according to Gallup. Roughly one in four identify as Democrats, even fewer as Republicans.
"If you want to make a difference, you have to be involved," said Nick Roberts. "And it's easy, I think, to throw your hands up and say, 'Well, I'm an independent. I hate both parties.' But if you actually want to be engaged in the process, you have to kind of pick a side."
"I think a lot of people go independent because it's kind of like a sign of, like purity, like I'm above the thing," added Nathan Roberts, "but really, it's just like you not having much of a voice. I sort of understand and respect what people do when they go independent, I just don't think it's the right strategy."
The twins got engaged in politics as Donald Trump rode down the escalator in Manhattan in 2015, launching his first presidential campaign. In 2020, they participated in their first campaigns and later supported rival candidates for president in 2024.
They say they agree on support for public safety, veterans issues and even protecting the environment. Their sharpest disagreement: immigration.
"I support law enforcement, but there's come a point where, you know, we are nation immigrants," said Nick Roberts. "Everybody came from immigrants at one point or another, and we have to do it humanely with laws, but not where we're treating people inhumanely like we've seen over the last few months."
Nathan Roberts rejects the view of an American "melting pot."
"'Nation of immigrants' -- those terms didn't, none of them even existed until post-1900. You never heard George Washington saying America is a nation of immigrants," he said.
On 95% of the issues, they sharply disagree and are dug in. When President Trump demanded Indiana redraw its election map to help Republicans in November, the twins even testified against each other in the statehouse.
Still, in what some see as a lesson for the country, the Roberts twins insist they manage never to get angry or unloving with each other.
"He's very intelligent, and I love the fact he gets involved. You have all these people giving their opinions about stuff on the internet, but none of them lift a finger, besides maybe voting," Nathan Roberts said of his brother. "He's somebody who shows up to stuff."
Nick Roberts said behind the "provocative" rhetoric, Nathan Roberts is reasoned and informed. "Though he pretends to be like a very inflammatory guy on social media," he said, "I think he is very well-read on history and knows a lot of his stuff and the law, especially immigration."
With no desire for higher political office for now, the Roberts twins say they're just content to be councilor and constituent, as brothers, modeling civility and love despite the deepest political differences.
"Believe it or not, he's actually not one of my most demanding constituents," Nick Roberts said of Nathan Roberts with a chuckle.
"There's been a time when I'm like, you know, you could change that, like, traffic sign to be slightly better and there wouldn't be such a traffic jam at that place at 5pm," Nathan Roberts quipped with a smile, "and he would be like that would be a good idea."