Less Participation of Young People in Electoral Politics

Less Participation of Young People in Electoral Politics

Introduction

The term 'democracy' essentially means government by people. A democratic system is one in which the state is run by a government that is established as per the choice of the public (Hill & Louth, 2006, p. 2-5). It allows people to have their say in important matters that affect their lives as well as the society that they live in. Citizens play a vital role in the proper functioning of a democracy. It is the obligation of citizens to remain informed about major public issues and to carefully follow the manner in which representatives and elected leaders use their powers (Russell, 2002, pp. 10-30; Johnson & Marshall, 2004, p. 12-17). In addition, citizens also have an obligation to express their own interests and voice their opinions and concerns. Hence, looking at the integral role that the public plays in the establishment of a strong democratic system of governance, it is absolutely imperative that there is strong participation from the public, not only during elections but also when policies are being formulated (Lopez & Kolaczkowski, 2003). Unfortunately, this is not always t he case and trends have been observed where the participation of youth in electoral processes has been particularly low. This paper examines why such trends have become common over the passage of time. In addition, it also explains the consequences of low youth participation and highlights some its adverse effects. In addition to this, some recommendations have also been made at the end of this paper which are intended to help foster greater awareness among the youth in a bid to increase their participation in electoral processes.

Discussion

From the time when youths were first provided with the chance to vote in the elections of 1972, a trend has been observed where the participation of youth has dropped significantly over the past few years (Institute for Conflict Research, Youth participation in the democratic process, 2004, p.7). Numerous studies have been conducted by researchers in a bid to determine the major causes for this declining trend, mainly because of concerns over the political consequences that the pattern may have on the political system (Russell, n.d.). It is true that not much is known about this particular segment of the population. A report by Lopez & Kolaczkowski (2003, p. 1) explains that youth who are eligible for voting but are not students have a lesser likelihood of casting a vote or to be registered as a voter. Apart from this, the study also helps to explain that these 'non-student' voters are less likely to volunteer in political campaigns or electoral processes since they are strongly formed opinions that their contributions will make little difference to communities (Luhrmann, n.d., p. 3). Conversely, the study also highlighted that college attending students were more likely to participate in electoral processes.

Reasons for Low Youth Participation in Politics

A number of factors have been identified as playing a vital role when it comes to motivating ...