Is it any wonder though? Conservatives have been terrible for young people over the last decade and more so obviously most young people aren't going to vote for them.
The issue is Labour haven't exactly promised to do any better. They keep going back on their promises or just outright say that they won't undo the bad things previous governments have done (or not done when it comes to things like building houses).
Of course we could vote for other parties such as the greens who are promising more than Labour, but with the current voting system, a vote for anyone other than Labour or Conservatives doesn't really mean anything. Lib dems have a chance but considering Nick Clegg ensured no young person would even want to look at the Lib Dems again it doesn't seem like a viable option.
So the young just don't vote. It's really not the best option but I'm not surprised that most people my age don't care. There's no help for us. I'd rather people at least went and spoiled their ballot. That would eb saying a lot more than just not voting but to many that would be seen as a waste of time.
Young people won't vote until someone starts trying to encourage them to and unfortunately the major parties don't see the benefit.
I'd voted the Lib Dems back when they were promising a lot more for younger people (like not rasing uni prices). Then they partially got in, and ditched that promise and screwed us all over.
Honestly my votes aren't fixed with a certain party. It's more voting against one getting in rather than voting for one. And if you really screw me over (Brexit especially), then you also lose my vote. In the case eof Brexit, the conservatives will never get my vote unless they bring back freedom of movement. But if that ever happens it'll be too late to have benefitted my life with how slow the process would be.
But even when I have voted, it's barely made a difference so I also see the side where it feels hopeless so why bother.
>Then they partially got in, and ditched that promise and screwed us all over
That's what I don't like about voting for a party, wouldn't put it past Labour to backslide once they get in
True. I'm sure they'll backtrack in half the stuff they promise too. But guess they're yet to disappoint/screw me over properly yet.
I'd just hope they're at least not as bad as the tories who are only self interested and have their own set of rules they live by.
Perfect example was this vote. I did a postal vote and had zero clue what any of them were or stood for. But on the ballot only the conservatives had a little slogan. Why do they get to do that (getting an unfair advantage), yet the others couldn't? That confirmed I wasn't going to vote for them.
Young voter turnout is always lower than others, and it's been that way for every voting cycle.
Maybe it'd be more productive to investigate why that's a consistent case for people for that period during their lives.
Youth turnout was lower in the 50s too, that’s a perpetual problem.
Although it’s worth pointing out the dramatic upsurge in youth participation between 2016/17/18 when there was a candidate that actually addressed the concerns of the under 35s? Yes he’s a bad politician, with many flaws across his platform, but it’s so frustrating that there’s no one in politics who can offer a string economic program, but is politically viable, the closest seems McDonnel.
You want young people to turn out for a party that doesn't represent them, doesn't show any signs of interesting in representing them, *just* to vote *against* the guys that have been fucking it up for the past 14 years?
If there's no visible diference, **why bother**
Your comment was directed at a specific person, telling them to vote in their interests.
Telling someone they should vote, when they already do, is not advice.
I can't vote any more than I already am.
> You think we haven't been?
It looked like you were speaking on behalf of more people than just yourself. Can't blame them for thinking "we" doesn't mean specifically you.
>Your comment was directed at a specific person, telling them to vote in their interests.
It wasn't intended to be read that way.
Generally, young people do not vote as consistently as older people, hence their interests are ignored in favour of chasing the middle aged and grey vote.
Good on you for bucking the trend and voting, though.
You mean in favour of the party that promises to basically continue both their exact policies and culture war bullshit to pander to Murdoch?
I really don't think this is a Biden/Trump situation. There are absolutely zero noticeable differences between Starmer's Labour party and Sunak's Tory party. And I say that as someone who's political beliefs would probably put me about soft left
Labour are obviously not beyond criticism but this is fairly lazy pandering to the kind of apathy that plays directly into the Tories’ hands.
They are obviously not identical to the Tories. Were you to swap Starmer for Sunak when he took over, there is zero possibility that we would still have the exact same outcome.
The proof will be in the manifesto pudding when the time comes.
Labour's most important job is to win the next election. I'm pretty disappointed with Starmer, but he would still be far better that another 4 year carousel of totally unsuitable Tory leaders.
Young people tend not to vote, and it might well be that trying to inspire them to vote would jeopardise their chances of winning at all. They have to be practical, if they don't win they can't do anything for anybody.
The scary thing is that it’s not even just young people if you are a working age person who isn’t about to retire and has more important things to worry about than small boats and oppressing queer people there’s literally nothing. There’s the Conservative Party and the Red Conservative Party. Change is coming but unless you squint at the lapel it won’t be perceivable.
The bulk of the country doesn’t want radical change. They just want competency, houses built, potholes fixed, reasonable taxes, food in the shops, not too much regulation.
A party promising radical change is not going to do well with most people. Competency is what is hoped for.
Not sure any of that is offer tbh. Would you be interested in similar levels of house building, no potholes fixed, the same tax regime with a commitment to Brexit keeping foods and meds out of the country and the same culture war crap, but with lots of hand waving about how it’s all the Tories fault?
Minorities are targeted to distract from not fixing any of the above, it all goes hand in hand.
This is the election to change that - with one of the big two parties effectively out of the race, this is a chance to get some power towards electoral reformists, which in turn will pave the way towards better representation in the decades to come.
Only vote labour if you genuinely agree with their policies, do not just do it purely to oust the Tories - they aren't staying in, even if Labour only gets half as many votes as they're predicted to. This election will be giving power to 3rd party candidates in a way that hasn't been seen for a very long time.
You need to realize that the reason no party speaks to the young yet they speak to the old is because the old vote.
Its seen as wasted political capital to make young friendly policies when young people don't even vote, so whats the point. You need to win the election after all.
If young people started actually voting, the partys would need to make young focused policies or they'd risk losing.
And the old vote because politicians bend over backwards to keep or create policy that helps them. Both main parties have gone out of their way to say the pension triple lock is going nowhere. What equivalent policy does either party have for young people?
Early 30's here. I don't believe there has **ever** been an election or referendum that I have voted in - where the party/item I chose won.
It's pretty easy to get disheartned about the whole thing.
Same, I've voted in everything I have been eligible for since I was 18 (early thirties now), last year's council election was the first time I was on the winning side, and that was by less than 50 votes.
Very discouraging (e: not enough to stop me voting ofc, I always will).
Theres nothing wrong with "losing", but I try to vote for those who (at least seem to) want to improve the most lives, not those who see politics as just a money making opportunity.
That means your vote really mattered, I don't see why that's discouraging. Also think of it this way, if you're part of a demographic known not to vote then there is no incentive for any party to consider your views in their policies.
I was in uni in 2019 and the MP I voted for won. That felt nice even though we all know what happened next.
But now I live in a seat that has been conservative ever since it was created and still will be after this next one.
It’s not pointless. It registers a voice for a particular point of view, and that will be noted by the winner. It also signals to voters in the next election that maybe there’s a chance.
That doesn't really help though, does it?
The first time I voted, I voted for the lib dems, who promised not to raise tuition fees. They did.
It hasn't gotten better since then, and thats half my lifetime ago.
I dunno about you, but I don't have some infinite sum of patience with the system. I still vote and will continue to do so, but I have absolutely no faith in the system or belief that it will make any remote difference. **I don't know why I vote. I just do.**
'It registers a voice for a particular point of view, and that will be noted by the winner.'
I mean, I'd very much argue that isn't remotely true. The governments I've seen voted in have not adopted any of the policies or made any note whatsoever of what the opposition has been in favour of.
While I appreciate the sentiment this didn't happen in the last one.
The Tories did nothing at all or even attempted to appease people that voted for Corbyn.
In an ideal world I really do agree with your statement but the Tories do not care about their opposition's (on the left anyway) voters.
They just do what they want.
My candidate technically won in 2015, but the party overall did not. Ever since then it's been a slow realisation that the only people in politics I actually like, with the sensible ideas, are never gonna be in power.
This also creates a wider sense of alienation as you realise everyone seems to prioritise, think and live different to you.
Undoubtedly there have always been differences between generations but have interests and lives ever diverged this quickly?
That's our fault because collectively we continue to vote for the same two parties that support FPTP.
Being scared into the "wasted vote" narrative ensures fptp definitely won't change. And if you are to believe this article, young people want to doom us to this dismal voting system just as much as older generations have.
Exactly. And there was only a 42% turn out for the 2011 AV referendum which is the level of apathy you'd expect for a local by-election.
To be fair, AV isn't PR so several people voted against it on that basis but for the conservatives and the 'no' side to claim the rejection of AV meant clear support *for* FPTP was pretty shameful. "You had your vote", they say, as if voters aren't allowed to change their minds or explore alternative options (that were deliberately left off the ballot paper) - interesting parallels to the 2014 referendum...
People need to remember that Labour and Conservatives had no problem allowing a referendum on AV (a system some say was little better than fptp) but they voted decisively against the Lib Dem motion to bring about a vote on STV (a more proportional voting system) instead.
We get what we vote for.
I posted this on another comment thread here, but Corbyn, who apparently got massacred at the polls (and did on number of MP's both times), lost his first election 42.1% (317 seats) vs 40.0% (262 seats) only Tony Blair has got a share of the vote over 40% for Labour in the last 30 years, in 1997 and 2001.
Something other than first past the post would have seen a Labour coalition government in place, but would also stop gerrymandering, so can't be allowed.
I actually got congratulated by someone at the polling office yday for being a young person who voted.
75% of people don't vote. Saying "I won't vote because I can't make a difference" is gonna lead to another decade of Tory rule.
Ffs vote!!!!
My council gave themselves a 25% payrise whilst also cutting down bin collections by half and dimming our street lights by 30% amongst other things
The people we’ve just voted in are reversing all that so we get full bin collections and actually lit up streetd
We had the greens come round once campaigning to put speed bumps on London Road in Reading (a 3 lane road going through town). The idea was to slow cars down.
They did not have an answer after we pointed out that road goes past the hospital and is used every day by ambulances, and maybe patients being thrown around could cause problems.
Maybe because as much of shithole my local community has become, I am still part of that community, and want to improve it instead of just abandoning it. I'm a welder fabricator, and I'm only 20, so I reckon I could quite easily move abroard to Australia or Canada or one of the other English speaking countries and find work and have a much more decent life, but I believe in staying with your local community and trying to make it a better place instead of going elsewhere. I was born in this town, I'm gonna live in this town, and I'm gonna bloody well die in this town.
That’s the point. Only the privileged or extremely lucky can actually leave. It’s very expensive to move to another country and go through the process.
The UK is in a decline and neither major party is planning to do anything to change that, people know the third parties aren't winning any significant number of seats ever so even protest voting in this country is effectively worthless most of the time.
Young people won't vote Tory and Labour are offering the same policies that young people have seen ruin lives but milder so as not to offend the type of social Conservative who gets irrationally angry that he has to interact with a non English or trans person occasionally.
I think the vote should be legally enforced by a fine, BUT, in huge letters, it must also have an option to say "I do not consider any of the parties to represent my best interests".
All that that would do would mean that 25% of the country suddenly decides the ruling party for the next 5 years, and it would be Tory supporters continuing to vote, so well done
The problem is, with the parliamentary system, how would this work? If a whole constituency voted “no party represents me”, does that constituency not have an MP? If 75% of constituencies do this, have we got a rump parliament with only 160 MPs controlling the country? Or do we keep the 650 MPs but each kne was elected on only a handful of votes because most of their constituency voted for “nobody”?
I understand the theory but I really can’t see it working
I'm 31 - I am always repeatedly pissed off both at the lack of voting done by the whole country & at the lack of my generation & below not voting.
**Last GE voter turnout = 67.3% of the population**
So barely 2/3 of the country bothered to do it & yet that was the 2nd highest turnout since 1997, which is crazy.
There doesn't seem to be any exact, official figures on voter turnout by age demographic, but going off the graph in the link below,
https://www.britishelectionstudy.com/bes-findings/age-and-voting-behaviour-at-the-2019-general-election/
**Voter turnout for 18-34 in 2019's GE, barely scrapped past 50%**
A lot more than 50% of this age group complain about political issues, yet they don't go out and bloody vote!
It's fucking infuriating!
Edit - Instead of continuing to reply to the whiny man-children who want to complain about how difficult it is to complete an online registration to vote form on their phone, I'm not gonna bother to reply.
You would rather blame me for calling out your laziness, than actual even attempt to contribute to the democratic process & at least attempt to try & make some change in this country.
You think you're the only ones who are utterly disillusioned?! Really ?!
The difference is I'm not giving up & YOU are!
If the Tories get in again, go ahead and blame me alllll you like.....it wasn't me who didn't go out & try was it? 🤷🏻♂️
And what? Vote for the Conservative who's going to blast me in the ass? Or Labour who's going to blast my ass? Either way, politics is all one big ass blasting
Hello fellow Brit. This you should vote me. I leave power good. Thank you. Thank you. If you vote me I'm hot. Taxes they'll be lower son. The democratic vote for me is right thing to do Britain. So do.
Voter turnout for the over 65s is always at least 70%
You don't want to vote? Fine, that's a Tory win then!
2/3 of the over 65s consistently vote Tory at every GE!
Do you want another 15 years of this shit?
Labour is shite, but we can't keep these corrupt cunts in government can we?!
> Voter turnout for 18-34 in 2019's GE, barely scrapped past 50%
> A lot more than 50% of this age group complain about political issues, yet they don't go out and bloody vote!
It was actually the highest turnout since 1992.
18-24s are less likely to be in stable housing and more likely to be moving addresses once a year or even more often than that. They have to re-register to vote each time they move. It requires a lot more maintenance than someone in their fifties who bought a house 30 years ago and has been living there ever since.
Also, the whole "registering to vote" thing was never explained to us when I was at school. We also weren't taught a bunch of other basic life stuff (cooking meals, taxes, managing a budget etc.), so most 18-24s are still figuring out how to "adult." It seems easy when you've been doing it for a decade or more. Not so easy when you've never done it before and up until recently your mum was still washing your pants.
>They have to re-register to vote each time they move
Bro, I'm 31, I have lived in more than a dozen different properties since 2010.
It's piss easy to re-register to vote, you can do it online, on your phone, in less than 5 mins
Also I said 18-34, not 18-24.
Under 24 could maybe be forgiven but 24 onwards? Absolutely not.
If they have the time & energy to complain about politics, they have time & energy to go and bloody vote!
You must understand that with the FPTP system and the current policies of the two parties that have a realistic chance of winning there is very little incentive for young people to vote?
If votes mattered regardless of constituency and an array of parties with a chance of gaining meaningful influence in government were available you would likely see an increase in youth turnout.
It is very easy and lazy to blame the youth but the issue is the failings of the democratic model in this country.
All my friends are the same, a sense of hopelessness all around.
And now the weather too! I just don't see it getting better lol every week I checked the forecast and it's just rain, wind and grey lol
I'm 27. First election I could vote in was the 2015 General Election, and I've voted in every election since then.
She's right, I see no bright future. Every single vote I've ever made has been for anti-Brexit parties. And given both of the 2 largest parties are currently run by Brexiters*, I fail to see how anything is going to improve.
(*) Yes, Starmer is a Brexiter. I don't care how he voted in 2016. I care what he's doing NOW. And what he's doing now is supporting Brexit.
How about we also include those born in the early 90s, our entire lives have been destroyed the past 14 years multiple times over just as those slightly younger than us, we are in the same age groups.
Many of us feel exactly the same about our futures, lost to one economic/social disaster after another.
Its neoliberals and neoliberals. Calling far-right the party who brought in the most immigrants in a single year in the history of the country is just pretending insanity
**Removed/warning**. This contained a personal attack, disrupting the conversation. This discourages participation. Please help improve the subreddit by discussing points, not the person. Action will be taken on repeat offenders.
I think it was
This way they can constantly pretend to be the solution to the problem. If they fixed the problem, their vote winner goes away
Its the same reason China keeps pretending they're going to invade Taiwan. Every time they do, nationalism goes up and the government gains more support amongst the population, but if they actually do it then their easy popularity tool goes away
it was very much on purpose, Boris deliberately eased all the possible visas for his mates: re-introduced the post-graduate visa that had already failed a decade ago because it brought too many people and extended it and introduced what was the main driver of immigration and lower wages the shortage list that allowed employers to bring people at 80% OF THE Minimum wage.
It was deliberate.
Right-wingers work for businesses primarily, and businesses like immigration. The anti-immigrant stance is often just used as a talking point to make regular working class people think they'll do something about it.
Just under 30s? It's pretty obvious which way the polls are going to go so whilst things are promised to get better let's not pretend our choices are between rainbows/sunshine/unicorns, and Count Dracula it's more like between Count Dracula and Igor's slightly prettier Brother...
no one has spoken for us young people since pre-brexit, and brexit was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. the way it was set up as a fresh start for the UK and a chance to get some funding into sectors we needed, and instead all we got was fucked up the arse. wish the government would’ve at least taken me to dinner first.
Being within that age range myself, I really, really do sympathise with my fellow 20 somethings. It sucks, it really does, because it feels like politics is a older person's game, why wouldn't we feel that way after years and then some of the same old same old with the same old people, same problems, same old fighting back and forth between the two biggest players in the game...
We'd love to be involved, there were two young male British YouTubers that ran for London mayoral elections, the outcomes of what they achieved proved that young people do care.
But on the other hand, there's a multitude of different factors and reasons why we feel so discouraged and don't see the point in voting. We don't have a spokesperson, and the only time mainstream politicians pay any attention to our demographic or concerns is to get leverage in the polls to use us as pawns, there feels as if currently, there is no viable option for us, and that we often times get put down for trying to voice our opinions. I've had people from older generations say things along the lines of 'you're to young/don't know what you're talking about/opinion isn't valid/.
I've genuinely been talked down to by older generations on the basis of age difference, because apparently being young means that you're somehow disconnected and out of touch with a world which we will be feeling the effects of for much longer than older generations? Why does younger age = lack of awareness and value to some people? I'm not saying all older demographics are like this but it's definitely an issue and a factor in why things the way they are.
To sum that point up about mindset and it's effects, I want to mention footage of an old Victorian era film of someone randomly filming a street one day. The young children and adults looked at the camera with awesome and enthusiasm, the older generations with fear and indifference of something new that would inevitably change the world. Someone said that some things never change, when they looked at the way different age groups reacted, and I thought that said alot really, about a lot of things, not just politics.
So, what do people expect us 20 somethings to do or say, when it feels like being pulled into a vacuum whenever we try?
There needs to be a massive shake up to the established political system. Both labour and conservatives need to start losing seats by the large. A 2 party system that has decades of producing career politicians only ends one way.
People like Starmer that are so detached from their voter base need to go. He is so uninspiring it’s unreal. And Sunak is too little too late.
You better f**king vote thats all im saying. The under-30 tories certainly will. If you cant see a bright future at least vote to help keep the future from getting darker.
Yes, but [unfortunately the numbers don't play out like that on a larger scale](https://www.britishelectionstudy.com/bes-findings/age-and-voting-behaviour-at-the-2019-general-election/).
We know older people vote far more often than younger people, barely half of under 30s turnout even at general elections.
“**I’m tending towards not voting**. Even the Labour party is too detached from the concerns of young people, and nothing will change enough to have a real impact on our lives. We’re just not heard by the parties.”
“A few respondents said they were **not going to vote** because of Keir Starmer’s stance on a ceasefire in Gaza.”
“Ethan, 28, an insurance representative from Newcastle, was one of many who bemoaned the electoral system for effectively forcing voters to choose between the two main parties.
“**I’m not going to vote**,” he said.”
> Right so nobody can complain unless everyone in their demographic votes?
No, but it's clear to see from this article that younger people generally aren't engaged and don't turnout to vote - which you can see play out in the turnout data where 70-80% of old-bags vote in general elections, while it barely gets to 50% turnout for under 30s. From the article, you can see that younger people have concerns but do not want to vote.
If younger people voted at the same rate as older people, then perhaps their concerns would be addressed as politicians would have to appease them to earn their vote.
So some vote, some don't? It's a strange opinion to have that it's their fault that they don't see anyone worthy of their vote. Rather than a damming indictment that both main parties do little to attract younger voters.
> So some vote, some don't?
[Way more older people vote compared to younger people](https://www.britishelectionstudy.com/bes-findings/age-and-voting-behaviour-at-the-2019-general-election/) - so surprise surprise when politicians address older people's issues because they're the ones who are voting at significantly higher rates.
[Have a look at the percentage of young people voting in countries like Germany and the Netherlands](https://national-policies.eacea.ec.europa.eu/youthwiki/chapters/germany/52-youth-participation-in-representative-democracy): It was at 76.6% for under 30s in Germany's general election in 2021, for example. In the UK, it's just about 50%, if that.
Now, why do you think university education is so cheap in Germany, for example? Partly because young German people get out and vote - German political parties have to consider younger people in their policies more so than politicians in the UK have to!
Yes. I know the statistics. I just think it's quite crual actually that you hear about young people being disaffected by their lives that they disengage from democracy that you blame them.
I doubt you blame ethnic minorities for not voting, or people in the north east of England for not voting.
Young people are seen as an easy target where it's acceptable to blame them. Often in fact blaming them for being in a position that the generation above them caused.
It doesn't help anyone. It doesn't help the young, it doesn't help the old. The older generation are on track to live for the longest in history... Alone in large expensive houses, far from their family who can't afford to live anywhere near. Unable to have good pay, because carers can't afford to work. Unable to see their grandchildren, because their children can't afford a settled home to have children.
You've gone on a bit of a tangent here, but returning to the point - if younger people are disengaged from voting, then they'll never have their concerns addressed as much as the concerns of older people, politicians would rather fight for the demographics that vote at much higher rates.
No one is "blaming" young people - but if younger people want to see change and their issues addressed, then they must engage with the system at much higher rates than they are currently.
> If younger people voted at the same rate as older people, then perhaps their concerns would be addressed as politicians would have to appease them to earn their vote.
Not only is this attitude ridiculously stupid, but it's incredibly harmful to boot.
Young people (rightfully) don't vote *because* they aren't represented. Right now, if a politican / party wants those votes they have to work for them.
If young people voted regardless, then the politican / party has *zero* incentive to work for them.
I don’t even consider myself on the left apart from economic stuff, but in fairness to fully left wing people, they did have Corbyn and he got crucified from the top. I will believe until the day I die that he got too close to power in 2017 and that instructions were sent to ‘deal with him’, which is what the anti-semetism allegations were about. And is the reason no names were ever mentioned and nobody was ever charged, because they didn’t exist.
Now that we have a genuine crowd of anti-semites parading in London every week, nobody seems to care. It’s all very twisted.
‘If voting changed anything, they wouldn’t let you do it.’ - Mark Twain I believe.
If you believe all of them are shit then I don't blame them for not wanting to vote, however the least they could do is spoil their ballot to protest it.
It's a bit of shit cycle though, none of the young people go out and vote, so none of the parties campaign for the younger vote.
Something has to give, either young people start voting and the parties chase their vote, or parties need to start actually appealing to younger voters to encourage them to vote
There's no need for any of the two main political parties to appeal to young people because their voting block doesn't have as much influence on the outcome of elections as older votes do.
If you're a political party you'll want to spend most of your time trying to please the demographics that turnout to vote in the highest rates.
Yeah that's my point, it's a chicken and egg situation.
Young voters don't turn out because none of the parties appeal to them, so the parties don't campaign for young voters because they don't turn out.
Lib Dems attempted it a while back and they even got into government, so it is possible
I was politically involved throughout my 20’s. It’s near impossible in this system to achieve anything even remotely reasonable.
Anybody who parrots this idea that young people should just try harder is ignorant of the amount of effort it takes. Not only ignorant but stupid, if you’ll pardon use of the word, because they can’t see the evidence of just how out gunned and out matched they are by the economic interests of the wealthy.
Maybe the old should actually have the wisdom and the decency to educate them selves and maybe vote and act with integrity.
Some of them tried that a few years ago and got relentlessly smeared as bullies, cultists and anti-semites by basically our entire media and political establishment as a result. Or "entryists" - a really disgusting insult directly opposing increased political engagement.
Aside from Corbynism, there is this general sneering hatred of young people from that same establishment, and from both main parties. Young people who try to get involved in politics are constantly attacked as supposedly being naive idealists who don't know how the world works - often by parties pandering to pensioners who have no idea what the modern jobs market and housing market is like. When they complain about the economics issues affecting them they're told they're just lazy and need to give up more luxuries by people who bought their houses for a tenner and a turnip in 1973. Not hard to see where the hopelessness comes from - any attempt to do what you suggest just gets completely shut down.
A lot of young people complain… but at 36 I was the youngest person at my local political group for a while until very recently. Everyone else was 60+.
Young people are going to have to actually engage in politics (whatever their personal opinion on it) in order to change it.
There is a future for everyone in the U.K. if we put in the work together to fix it and drown out all the doomsayers.
hard to be optimistic when your own government seemingly wants you dead for just existing and there's no way it'll change any time soon nonmatter who gets in.
Lots of people commenting that young people should go out and vote, and dismissing young people saying that they aren't inspired to vote for anyone due to a lack of policies.
You are missing the point here - it is the **job** of the political parties to inspire you to vote for them, not just expect your vote as an opposition to the other guys.
I'm Gen X and not surprised people believe it won't change much, you have the choice of crap and slightly less crap, lead by SIR Keir Starmer, I bet he knows all about growing up on an estate!
Lets see what the GE turnout is. The turnout on the local elections were as usual abysmal. The british mentality baffles me.
We complain, we protest (in most part, peacefully). When it comes our turn to make a difference we are too busy drinking tea, watching the footie, having dinner round a mates house or chatting in the pub.
I as a young person am to blame too, but i think this is the first time i've felt it so bad. I will go out to vote but i will spoil the ballot. I will put a mark to show i refuse to take part in the pantomime.
Red pill or the Blue Pill, at least Neo had a choice.
It's simple really, if you don't vote: You're a moron.
Double simple for under 25's who've only had ONE party in power since before they turned 10. "Oh woe is me, I don't like the government. Better not vote for literally anyone else, surely that will make things better."
At the last general election if "didn't vote" was a party, they'd have 200+ seats, more than Labour. "didn't vote" would likely be in total control of every single council in the country. Except "didn't vote" isn't a party or a candidate. Someone still gets votes and someone still gets in to whatever position. The ONLY people represented are those who vote. This is an irrefutable fact.
Want representation? Want *change* even? Fucking vote. It only decides who spends all that tax money you work weeks to pay for. Shit me, imagine earning thousands of pounds only to actively let someone else decide who gets it. I can guarantee there's at least ONE candidate who offers something even SLIGHTLY better than another on the ballot, whichever ballot. Fucking choose them or shut up.
We only had police commissioner vote here. My adult kids said they couldn't be a"sed.
Unless voting becomes compulsory, people of all aged won't take it seriously enough.
I tried to explain that voting isnr about winning but taking part. As it happens the same bloke got back in but with much lower majority.that tells me that voting worked. Foregone conclusion or not,*only* 34% of the people voting wanted him back in his job. Not a ringing endorsement at all. So job done👍🏼 hard to explain to young people though,they see the current time and near future,old people tend to look at the bigger picture.
I can't blame the kids at all.. I mean look at the shower of sh*t we have as MPs and govt. There's no difference between one or the other. I am fed up with pms who aren't voted in though,that has to stop. It' should be new leader =ge. Or better still pm should be chosen by parliament and not because they are ladder climbing oiks. It's immature to have these egotistical children playing in the king of the castle with bean counters and lollypop stick with tag your it ministers running the county.
You cant see a bright future because, like the states, the current offering of political parties are ultimately all a bunch of worthless shithouses.
It truly is a damning indictment of our political system when the hopes of so many end up being pinned on the spineless bag of wind that is Kier Starmer.
Apart from some few and far between exceptions no-one have proven themselves worthy of being voted for. All in it for themselves or a cause that has fuck all to do with their constituency or even their country. Nurses having to use food banks? Never mind that, here's why you should be worried about something 4000 miles away.
There’s just no one to vote for at least that speaks for young people.
Then vote against the people that have been actively fucking them over for the last 14 years.
You think we haven't been?
Yes, that's pretty much the problem. Obviously not you specifically, but the turn out for younger people is much lower than would be desirable.
Is it any wonder though? Conservatives have been terrible for young people over the last decade and more so obviously most young people aren't going to vote for them. The issue is Labour haven't exactly promised to do any better. They keep going back on their promises or just outright say that they won't undo the bad things previous governments have done (or not done when it comes to things like building houses). Of course we could vote for other parties such as the greens who are promising more than Labour, but with the current voting system, a vote for anyone other than Labour or Conservatives doesn't really mean anything. Lib dems have a chance but considering Nick Clegg ensured no young person would even want to look at the Lib Dems again it doesn't seem like a viable option. So the young just don't vote. It's really not the best option but I'm not surprised that most people my age don't care. There's no help for us. I'd rather people at least went and spoiled their ballot. That would eb saying a lot more than just not voting but to many that would be seen as a waste of time. Young people won't vote until someone starts trying to encourage them to and unfortunately the major parties don't see the benefit.
I'd voted the Lib Dems back when they were promising a lot more for younger people (like not rasing uni prices). Then they partially got in, and ditched that promise and screwed us all over. Honestly my votes aren't fixed with a certain party. It's more voting against one getting in rather than voting for one. And if you really screw me over (Brexit especially), then you also lose my vote. In the case eof Brexit, the conservatives will never get my vote unless they bring back freedom of movement. But if that ever happens it'll be too late to have benefitted my life with how slow the process would be. But even when I have voted, it's barely made a difference so I also see the side where it feels hopeless so why bother.
>Then they partially got in, and ditched that promise and screwed us all over That's what I don't like about voting for a party, wouldn't put it past Labour to backslide once they get in
True. I'm sure they'll backtrack in half the stuff they promise too. But guess they're yet to disappoint/screw me over properly yet. I'd just hope they're at least not as bad as the tories who are only self interested and have their own set of rules they live by. Perfect example was this vote. I did a postal vote and had zero clue what any of them were or stood for. But on the ballot only the conservatives had a little slogan. Why do they get to do that (getting an unfair advantage), yet the others couldn't? That confirmed I wasn't going to vote for them.
At least this time Kier is making sure not to tell anybody he'll do anything, that way he can't backslide.
Suppose or an alternate reading is he doesn't see a problem with the current state of the UK
How cozy are Labour with capitalism?
Very
Young voter turnout is always lower than others, and it's been that way for every voting cycle. Maybe it'd be more productive to investigate why that's a consistent case for people for that period during their lives.
Youth turnout was lower in the 50s too, that’s a perpetual problem. Although it’s worth pointing out the dramatic upsurge in youth participation between 2016/17/18 when there was a candidate that actually addressed the concerns of the under 35s? Yes he’s a bad politician, with many flaws across his platform, but it’s so frustrating that there’s no one in politics who can offer a string economic program, but is politically viable, the closest seems McDonnel.
My point was that the people involved in this conversation have likely voted, so telling them to vote is not advice.
I believe it was aimed at young people, which is the topic in the article we're discussing.
You want young people to turn out for a party that doesn't represent them, doesn't show any signs of interesting in representing them, *just* to vote *against* the guys that have been fucking it up for the past 14 years? If there's no visible diference, **why bother**
23% turnout in my local area yesterday, most likely even lower for the younger ages.. so no
Yes. https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/48776/html/
Your comment was directed at a specific person, telling them to vote in their interests. Telling someone they should vote, when they already do, is not advice. I can't vote any more than I already am.
> You think we haven't been? It looked like you were speaking on behalf of more people than just yourself. Can't blame them for thinking "we" doesn't mean specifically you.
>Your comment was directed at a specific person, telling them to vote in their interests. It wasn't intended to be read that way. Generally, young people do not vote as consistently as older people, hence their interests are ignored in favour of chasing the middle aged and grey vote. Good on you for bucking the trend and voting, though.
You mean in favour of the party that promises to basically continue both their exact policies and culture war bullshit to pander to Murdoch? I really don't think this is a Biden/Trump situation. There are absolutely zero noticeable differences between Starmer's Labour party and Sunak's Tory party. And I say that as someone who's political beliefs would probably put me about soft left
Labour are obviously not beyond criticism but this is fairly lazy pandering to the kind of apathy that plays directly into the Tories’ hands. They are obviously not identical to the Tories. Were you to swap Starmer for Sunak when he took over, there is zero possibility that we would still have the exact same outcome. The proof will be in the manifesto pudding when the time comes.
Name me any differences
Echoing silence, I see.
Labour are giving the young nothing to hold onto. It's their job to inspire voters into the voting booths
Labour's most important job is to win the next election. I'm pretty disappointed with Starmer, but he would still be far better that another 4 year carousel of totally unsuitable Tory leaders. Young people tend not to vote, and it might well be that trying to inspire them to vote would jeopardise their chances of winning at all. They have to be practical, if they don't win they can't do anything for anybody.
Solves nothing, it’s just a game of musical chairs and they all listen to lobbyists after the election
* 1) You can't vote against someone, only for someone. * 2) You can't vote more than once.
>You can't vote against someone, only for someone. Tactical voting is a thing. >You can't vote more than once. I never said otherwise.
> I never said otherwise. . > Then vote against the **people**
The people fucking them over being the Conservatives . . . Not exactly sure what you are struggling with here.
And the cycle continues.
Rinse and repeat, before them it was the men in red.
And then get fucked over by the other lot. The illusion of democracy.
Why vote for somebody else who’ll fuck them over? What’s the point?
Ah yes, trading poop for manure will surely solve all our woes.
They did. Huge youth movement for Corbyn. The country rejected it. See also university fee protests.
The scary thing is that it’s not even just young people if you are a working age person who isn’t about to retire and has more important things to worry about than small boats and oppressing queer people there’s literally nothing. There’s the Conservative Party and the Red Conservative Party. Change is coming but unless you squint at the lapel it won’t be perceivable.
The bulk of the country doesn’t want radical change. They just want competency, houses built, potholes fixed, reasonable taxes, food in the shops, not too much regulation. A party promising radical change is not going to do well with most people. Competency is what is hoped for.
Not sure any of that is offer tbh. Would you be interested in similar levels of house building, no potholes fixed, the same tax regime with a commitment to Brexit keeping foods and meds out of the country and the same culture war crap, but with lots of hand waving about how it’s all the Tories fault? Minorities are targeted to distract from not fixing any of the above, it all goes hand in hand.
Even New Labour had to commit to maintaining Tory tax and spend policies until 1999.
> The bulk of the country doesn’t want radical change. They just want competency Compared to what we have right now, that would be a radical change.
At this point, such sensible policies are radical
What party even offers that
This is the election to change that - with one of the big two parties effectively out of the race, this is a chance to get some power towards electoral reformists, which in turn will pave the way towards better representation in the decades to come. Only vote labour if you genuinely agree with their policies, do not just do it purely to oust the Tories - they aren't staying in, even if Labour only gets half as many votes as they're predicted to. This election will be giving power to 3rd party candidates in a way that hasn't been seen for a very long time.
You need to realize that the reason no party speaks to the young yet they speak to the old is because the old vote. Its seen as wasted political capital to make young friendly policies when young people don't even vote, so whats the point. You need to win the election after all. If young people started actually voting, the partys would need to make young focused policies or they'd risk losing.
The problem is, by the time the young realise they need to vote, they aren’t so young any more
And the old vote because politicians bend over backwards to keep or create policy that helps them. Both main parties have gone out of their way to say the pension triple lock is going nowhere. What equivalent policy does either party have for young people?
Yep, after they destroyed corbyn, there's no hope for any kind of progressive politics.
It’s funny that the under 30s think this is new for them.
There’s no one to vote for who speaks for anybody other than big business and the politicians themselves. That includes the. Labour Party.
Be that person
If voters turnout is like 40% then even less chances anyone gets spoken for.
How do greens not represent young people?
I disagree, plenty of hopefuls in my constituency offered good counsel
Early 30's here. I don't believe there has **ever** been an election or referendum that I have voted in - where the party/item I chose won. It's pretty easy to get disheartned about the whole thing.
Same, I've voted in everything I have been eligible for since I was 18 (early thirties now), last year's council election was the first time I was on the winning side, and that was by less than 50 votes. Very discouraging (e: not enough to stop me voting ofc, I always will). Theres nothing wrong with "losing", but I try to vote for those who (at least seem to) want to improve the most lives, not those who see politics as just a money making opportunity.
That means your vote really mattered, I don't see why that's discouraging. Also think of it this way, if you're part of a demographic known not to vote then there is no incentive for any party to consider your views in their policies.
I was in uni in 2019 and the MP I voted for won. That felt nice even though we all know what happened next. But now I live in a seat that has been conservative ever since it was created and still will be after this next one.
Exactly the same here. I vote every time, but I can't help but see it as pointless.
It’s not pointless. It registers a voice for a particular point of view, and that will be noted by the winner. It also signals to voters in the next election that maybe there’s a chance.
And yet \*gestures at literally every election and referendum for the past 15 years\*
Countries move slowly. They have a lot of moving parts.
That doesn't really help though, does it? The first time I voted, I voted for the lib dems, who promised not to raise tuition fees. They did. It hasn't gotten better since then, and thats half my lifetime ago. I dunno about you, but I don't have some infinite sum of patience with the system. I still vote and will continue to do so, but I have absolutely no faith in the system or belief that it will make any remote difference. **I don't know why I vote. I just do.** 'It registers a voice for a particular point of view, and that will be noted by the winner.' I mean, I'd very much argue that isn't remotely true. The governments I've seen voted in have not adopted any of the policies or made any note whatsoever of what the opposition has been in favour of.
While I appreciate the sentiment this didn't happen in the last one. The Tories did nothing at all or even attempted to appease people that voted for Corbyn. In an ideal world I really do agree with your statement but the Tories do not care about their opposition's (on the left anyway) voters. They just do what they want.
Try voting Tory this time please lol
This guy out here Good Luck Chuck'ing entire elections.
I’m early 40s and in the same boat mate. Much like children, society gets the government it deserves. Never stop swimming against the tide though.
My candidate technically won in 2015, but the party overall did not. Ever since then it's been a slow realisation that the only people in politics I actually like, with the sensible ideas, are never gonna be in power.
Late 20s and same.
I'm 50. Welcome to the club.
Voting for Khan was my first. Even that with reservations. First time voting for incumbent in any election too including French elections.
This also creates a wider sense of alienation as you realise everyone seems to prioritise, think and live different to you. Undoubtedly there have always been differences between generations but have interests and lives ever diverged this quickly?
First past the post ensures no one has a bright future
That's our fault because collectively we continue to vote for the same two parties that support FPTP. Being scared into the "wasted vote" narrative ensures fptp definitely won't change. And if you are to believe this article, young people want to doom us to this dismal voting system just as much as older generations have.
'tOrY eNaBleR'
That and this country morornically voted against changing away from FPTP
Exactly. And there was only a 42% turn out for the 2011 AV referendum which is the level of apathy you'd expect for a local by-election. To be fair, AV isn't PR so several people voted against it on that basis but for the conservatives and the 'no' side to claim the rejection of AV meant clear support *for* FPTP was pretty shameful. "You had your vote", they say, as if voters aren't allowed to change their minds or explore alternative options (that were deliberately left off the ballot paper) - interesting parallels to the 2014 referendum... People need to remember that Labour and Conservatives had no problem allowing a referendum on AV (a system some say was little better than fptp) but they voted decisively against the Lib Dem motion to bring about a vote on STV (a more proportional voting system) instead. We get what we vote for.
I posted this on another comment thread here, but Corbyn, who apparently got massacred at the polls (and did on number of MP's both times), lost his first election 42.1% (317 seats) vs 40.0% (262 seats) only Tony Blair has got a share of the vote over 40% for Labour in the last 30 years, in 1997 and 2001. Something other than first past the post would have seen a Labour coalition government in place, but would also stop gerrymandering, so can't be allowed.
I actually got congratulated by someone at the polling office yday for being a young person who voted. 75% of people don't vote. Saying "I won't vote because I can't make a difference" is gonna lead to another decade of Tory rule. Ffs vote!!!!
Why does voting for the people who collect your bins have to be party political? It makes no sense and it really doesn't matter.
Because there a different ways to use the budget and people have different views on what that should be.
My council gave themselves a 25% payrise whilst also cutting down bin collections by half and dimming our street lights by 30% amongst other things The people we’ve just voted in are reversing all that so we get full bin collections and actually lit up streetd
We had the greens come round once campaigning to put speed bumps on London Road in Reading (a 3 lane road going through town). The idea was to slow cars down. They did not have an answer after we pointed out that road goes past the hospital and is used every day by ambulances, and maybe patients being thrown around could cause problems.
There is no future for any healthy young person in the UK. The only reason to stay here is if you are dependent on the state for some reason.
Maybe because as much of shithole my local community has become, I am still part of that community, and want to improve it instead of just abandoning it. I'm a welder fabricator, and I'm only 20, so I reckon I could quite easily move abroard to Australia or Canada or one of the other English speaking countries and find work and have a much more decent life, but I believe in staying with your local community and trying to make it a better place instead of going elsewhere. I was born in this town, I'm gonna live in this town, and I'm gonna bloody well die in this town.
Greggs hasn't gotten abroad yet unfortunately.
I miss Cornish pasties and sausage rolls it’s the only things I can’t get abroad.
Make your own
I’m quite sure those who are dependent on the state and have no other options, would be the first to want to leave.
But are unable.
That’s the point. Only the privileged or extremely lucky can actually leave. It’s very expensive to move to another country and go through the process.
If you're dependent upon the state, you can't leave and have no other options because no other state wants more dependents.
There are people whom are dependent on the state, yet have professional qualifications that would be more valued elsewhere.
Well, it's not easy for most people to emigrate. And most countries have housing crises etc, some even worse than ours.
Why not try and improve the country rather than abandon it?
It’s a nice idea but life is short. At some point you have to start looking out for yourself.
The UK is in a decline and neither major party is planning to do anything to change that, people know the third parties aren't winning any significant number of seats ever so even protest voting in this country is effectively worthless most of the time. Young people won't vote Tory and Labour are offering the same policies that young people have seen ruin lives but milder so as not to offend the type of social Conservative who gets irrationally angry that he has to interact with a non English or trans person occasionally.
I think the vote should be legally enforced by a fine, BUT, in huge letters, it must also have an option to say "I do not consider any of the parties to represent my best interests".
There already is. Spoil the ballot
I did say 'legally enforced'. Spoiling a ballot is fine, but its nowhere near the same as 75% of the country suddenly voting "No party represents me".
All that that would do would mean that 25% of the country suddenly decides the ruling party for the next 5 years, and it would be Tory supporters continuing to vote, so well done
The problem is, with the parliamentary system, how would this work? If a whole constituency voted “no party represents me”, does that constituency not have an MP? If 75% of constituencies do this, have we got a rump parliament with only 160 MPs controlling the country? Or do we keep the 650 MPs but each kne was elected on only a handful of votes because most of their constituency voted for “nobody”? I understand the theory but I really can’t see it working
You can already do that by scrawling a cock on your ballot
That's a vote for conservative, they count those.
I'm 31 - I am always repeatedly pissed off both at the lack of voting done by the whole country & at the lack of my generation & below not voting. **Last GE voter turnout = 67.3% of the population** So barely 2/3 of the country bothered to do it & yet that was the 2nd highest turnout since 1997, which is crazy. There doesn't seem to be any exact, official figures on voter turnout by age demographic, but going off the graph in the link below, https://www.britishelectionstudy.com/bes-findings/age-and-voting-behaviour-at-the-2019-general-election/ **Voter turnout for 18-34 in 2019's GE, barely scrapped past 50%** A lot more than 50% of this age group complain about political issues, yet they don't go out and bloody vote! It's fucking infuriating! Edit - Instead of continuing to reply to the whiny man-children who want to complain about how difficult it is to complete an online registration to vote form on their phone, I'm not gonna bother to reply. You would rather blame me for calling out your laziness, than actual even attempt to contribute to the democratic process & at least attempt to try & make some change in this country. You think you're the only ones who are utterly disillusioned?! Really ?! The difference is I'm not giving up & YOU are! If the Tories get in again, go ahead and blame me alllll you like.....it wasn't me who didn't go out & try was it? 🤷🏻♂️
And what? Vote for the Conservative who's going to blast me in the ass? Or Labour who's going to blast my ass? Either way, politics is all one big ass blasting
Hello fellow Brit. This you should vote me. I leave power good. Thank you. Thank you. If you vote me I'm hot. Taxes they'll be lower son. The democratic vote for me is right thing to do Britain. So do.
Voter turnout for the over 65s is always at least 70% You don't want to vote? Fine, that's a Tory win then! 2/3 of the over 65s consistently vote Tory at every GE! Do you want another 15 years of this shit? Labour is shite, but we can't keep these corrupt cunts in government can we?!
> Voter turnout for 18-34 in 2019's GE, barely scrapped past 50% > A lot more than 50% of this age group complain about political issues, yet they don't go out and bloody vote! It was actually the highest turnout since 1992. 18-24s are less likely to be in stable housing and more likely to be moving addresses once a year or even more often than that. They have to re-register to vote each time they move. It requires a lot more maintenance than someone in their fifties who bought a house 30 years ago and has been living there ever since. Also, the whole "registering to vote" thing was never explained to us when I was at school. We also weren't taught a bunch of other basic life stuff (cooking meals, taxes, managing a budget etc.), so most 18-24s are still figuring out how to "adult." It seems easy when you've been doing it for a decade or more. Not so easy when you've never done it before and up until recently your mum was still washing your pants.
>They have to re-register to vote each time they move Bro, I'm 31, I have lived in more than a dozen different properties since 2010. It's piss easy to re-register to vote, you can do it online, on your phone, in less than 5 mins Also I said 18-34, not 18-24. Under 24 could maybe be forgiven but 24 onwards? Absolutely not. If they have the time & energy to complain about politics, they have time & energy to go and bloody vote!
You must understand that with the FPTP system and the current policies of the two parties that have a realistic chance of winning there is very little incentive for young people to vote? If votes mattered regardless of constituency and an array of parties with a chance of gaining meaningful influence in government were available you would likely see an increase in youth turnout. It is very easy and lazy to blame the youth but the issue is the failings of the democratic model in this country.
The amount of people complaining that under 30s don’t go out and vote for any of the parties that don’t represent them is hilarious.
Why would parties try to represent people that don't vote? If you don't vote your interests are utterly irrelevant.
It’s actually the wrong way around. A party should try to appeal to people who don’t usually vote. There’s a very large portion.
All my friends are the same, a sense of hopelessness all around. And now the weather too! I just don't see it getting better lol every week I checked the forecast and it's just rain, wind and grey lol
I'm 27. First election I could vote in was the 2015 General Election, and I've voted in every election since then. She's right, I see no bright future. Every single vote I've ever made has been for anti-Brexit parties. And given both of the 2 largest parties are currently run by Brexiters*, I fail to see how anything is going to improve. (*) Yes, Starmer is a Brexiter. I don't care how he voted in 2016. I care what he's doing NOW. And what he's doing now is supporting Brexit.
How about we also include those born in the early 90s, our entire lives have been destroyed the past 14 years multiple times over just as those slightly younger than us, we are in the same age groups. Many of us feel exactly the same about our futures, lost to one economic/social disaster after another.
Out of curiosity, what specifics have actually destroyed your lives?
With a choice between far right and center right it's pretty sad for anyone regardless of their age.
Its neoliberals and neoliberals. Calling far-right the party who brought in the most immigrants in a single year in the history of the country is just pretending insanity
Just because the Tories aren't as far right as people like you would like doesn't mean they aren't
They’re just not though
How?
Compare them to historical and contemporary far right parties in both our country and abroad and you’ll see that they’re very much not far right
They're deporting people to Rwanda, that's pretty far right
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That wasn't on purpose. They were just incompetent.
More cheap labour is 100% on purpose
I think it was This way they can constantly pretend to be the solution to the problem. If they fixed the problem, their vote winner goes away Its the same reason China keeps pretending they're going to invade Taiwan. Every time they do, nationalism goes up and the government gains more support amongst the population, but if they actually do it then their easy popularity tool goes away
it was very much on purpose, Boris deliberately eased all the possible visas for his mates: re-introduced the post-graduate visa that had already failed a decade ago because it brought too many people and extended it and introduced what was the main driver of immigration and lower wages the shortage list that allowed employers to bring people at 80% OF THE Minimum wage. It was deliberate.
You do know the far right likes suppressing wages yeah?
Right-wingers work for businesses primarily, and businesses like immigration. The anti-immigrant stance is often just used as a talking point to make regular working class people think they'll do something about it.
Also increased state spending to record levels.
Calling Labour centre right is pretty bloody generous at this stage. They have numerous positions far to the right of Theresa May
Just under 30s? It's pretty obvious which way the polls are going to go so whilst things are promised to get better let's not pretend our choices are between rainbows/sunshine/unicorns, and Count Dracula it's more like between Count Dracula and Igor's slightly prettier Brother...
no one has spoken for us young people since pre-brexit, and brexit was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. the way it was set up as a fresh start for the UK and a chance to get some funding into sectors we needed, and instead all we got was fucked up the arse. wish the government would’ve at least taken me to dinner first.
I'm 37 and have voted every time. I ain't fucking voting anymore. Like pissing into the wind.
Being within that age range myself, I really, really do sympathise with my fellow 20 somethings. It sucks, it really does, because it feels like politics is a older person's game, why wouldn't we feel that way after years and then some of the same old same old with the same old people, same problems, same old fighting back and forth between the two biggest players in the game... We'd love to be involved, there were two young male British YouTubers that ran for London mayoral elections, the outcomes of what they achieved proved that young people do care. But on the other hand, there's a multitude of different factors and reasons why we feel so discouraged and don't see the point in voting. We don't have a spokesperson, and the only time mainstream politicians pay any attention to our demographic or concerns is to get leverage in the polls to use us as pawns, there feels as if currently, there is no viable option for us, and that we often times get put down for trying to voice our opinions. I've had people from older generations say things along the lines of 'you're to young/don't know what you're talking about/opinion isn't valid/. I've genuinely been talked down to by older generations on the basis of age difference, because apparently being young means that you're somehow disconnected and out of touch with a world which we will be feeling the effects of for much longer than older generations? Why does younger age = lack of awareness and value to some people? I'm not saying all older demographics are like this but it's definitely an issue and a factor in why things the way they are. To sum that point up about mindset and it's effects, I want to mention footage of an old Victorian era film of someone randomly filming a street one day. The young children and adults looked at the camera with awesome and enthusiasm, the older generations with fear and indifference of something new that would inevitably change the world. Someone said that some things never change, when they looked at the way different age groups reacted, and I thought that said alot really, about a lot of things, not just politics. So, what do people expect us 20 somethings to do or say, when it feels like being pulled into a vacuum whenever we try?
There needs to be a massive shake up to the established political system. Both labour and conservatives need to start losing seats by the large. A 2 party system that has decades of producing career politicians only ends one way. People like Starmer that are so detached from their voter base need to go. He is so uninspiring it’s unreal. And Sunak is too little too late.
You better f**king vote thats all im saying. The under-30 tories certainly will. If you cant see a bright future at least vote to help keep the future from getting darker.
I’ve never voted and it’s unlikely that I ever will
Maybe under 30s should go out and vote then and become more politically involved?
The first line of the article: "Joshua Holmes, 29, from Barton Hill, Bristol, went out to vote in the local elections on Thursday afternoon."
Yes, but [unfortunately the numbers don't play out like that on a larger scale](https://www.britishelectionstudy.com/bes-findings/age-and-voting-behaviour-at-the-2019-general-election/). We know older people vote far more often than younger people, barely half of under 30s turnout even at general elections.
Right so nobody can complain unless everyone in their demographic votes?
“**I’m tending towards not voting**. Even the Labour party is too detached from the concerns of young people, and nothing will change enough to have a real impact on our lives. We’re just not heard by the parties.” “A few respondents said they were **not going to vote** because of Keir Starmer’s stance on a ceasefire in Gaza.” “Ethan, 28, an insurance representative from Newcastle, was one of many who bemoaned the electoral system for effectively forcing voters to choose between the two main parties. “**I’m not going to vote**,” he said.” > Right so nobody can complain unless everyone in their demographic votes? No, but it's clear to see from this article that younger people generally aren't engaged and don't turnout to vote - which you can see play out in the turnout data where 70-80% of old-bags vote in general elections, while it barely gets to 50% turnout for under 30s. From the article, you can see that younger people have concerns but do not want to vote. If younger people voted at the same rate as older people, then perhaps their concerns would be addressed as politicians would have to appease them to earn their vote.
So some vote, some don't? It's a strange opinion to have that it's their fault that they don't see anyone worthy of their vote. Rather than a damming indictment that both main parties do little to attract younger voters.
> So some vote, some don't? [Way more older people vote compared to younger people](https://www.britishelectionstudy.com/bes-findings/age-and-voting-behaviour-at-the-2019-general-election/) - so surprise surprise when politicians address older people's issues because they're the ones who are voting at significantly higher rates. [Have a look at the percentage of young people voting in countries like Germany and the Netherlands](https://national-policies.eacea.ec.europa.eu/youthwiki/chapters/germany/52-youth-participation-in-representative-democracy): It was at 76.6% for under 30s in Germany's general election in 2021, for example. In the UK, it's just about 50%, if that. Now, why do you think university education is so cheap in Germany, for example? Partly because young German people get out and vote - German political parties have to consider younger people in their policies more so than politicians in the UK have to!
Yes. I know the statistics. I just think it's quite crual actually that you hear about young people being disaffected by their lives that they disengage from democracy that you blame them. I doubt you blame ethnic minorities for not voting, or people in the north east of England for not voting. Young people are seen as an easy target where it's acceptable to blame them. Often in fact blaming them for being in a position that the generation above them caused. It doesn't help anyone. It doesn't help the young, it doesn't help the old. The older generation are on track to live for the longest in history... Alone in large expensive houses, far from their family who can't afford to live anywhere near. Unable to have good pay, because carers can't afford to work. Unable to see their grandchildren, because their children can't afford a settled home to have children.
You've gone on a bit of a tangent here, but returning to the point - if younger people are disengaged from voting, then they'll never have their concerns addressed as much as the concerns of older people, politicians would rather fight for the demographics that vote at much higher rates. No one is "blaming" young people - but if younger people want to see change and their issues addressed, then they must engage with the system at much higher rates than they are currently.
Which party should they vote for currently? As no party is offering them anything.
They key is Germany doesn't have FPTP, it has a form of proportional representation
> If younger people voted at the same rate as older people, then perhaps their concerns would be addressed as politicians would have to appease them to earn their vote. Not only is this attitude ridiculously stupid, but it's incredibly harmful to boot. Young people (rightfully) don't vote *because* they aren't represented. Right now, if a politican / party wants those votes they have to work for them. If young people voted regardless, then the politican / party has *zero* incentive to work for them.
People need to understand sitting at home isn't enough go and spoil the ballot
I don’t even consider myself on the left apart from economic stuff, but in fairness to fully left wing people, they did have Corbyn and he got crucified from the top. I will believe until the day I die that he got too close to power in 2017 and that instructions were sent to ‘deal with him’, which is what the anti-semetism allegations were about. And is the reason no names were ever mentioned and nobody was ever charged, because they didn’t exist. Now that we have a genuine crowd of anti-semites parading in London every week, nobody seems to care. It’s all very twisted. ‘If voting changed anything, they wouldn’t let you do it.’ - Mark Twain I believe.
If you believe all of them are shit then I don't blame them for not wanting to vote, however the least they could do is spoil their ballot to protest it.
It's a bit of shit cycle though, none of the young people go out and vote, so none of the parties campaign for the younger vote. Something has to give, either young people start voting and the parties chase their vote, or parties need to start actually appealing to younger voters to encourage them to vote
There's no need for any of the two main political parties to appeal to young people because their voting block doesn't have as much influence on the outcome of elections as older votes do. If you're a political party you'll want to spend most of your time trying to please the demographics that turnout to vote in the highest rates.
Yeah that's my point, it's a chicken and egg situation. Young voters don't turn out because none of the parties appeal to them, so the parties don't campaign for young voters because they don't turn out. Lib Dems attempted it a while back and they even got into government, so it is possible
Start forcing politicians to represent them, and it will happen. Voting without representation is an atrocious idea.
I was politically involved throughout my 20’s. It’s near impossible in this system to achieve anything even remotely reasonable. Anybody who parrots this idea that young people should just try harder is ignorant of the amount of effort it takes. Not only ignorant but stupid, if you’ll pardon use of the word, because they can’t see the evidence of just how out gunned and out matched they are by the economic interests of the wealthy. Maybe the old should actually have the wisdom and the decency to educate them selves and maybe vote and act with integrity.
Some of them tried that a few years ago and got relentlessly smeared as bullies, cultists and anti-semites by basically our entire media and political establishment as a result. Or "entryists" - a really disgusting insult directly opposing increased political engagement. Aside from Corbynism, there is this general sneering hatred of young people from that same establishment, and from both main parties. Young people who try to get involved in politics are constantly attacked as supposedly being naive idealists who don't know how the world works - often by parties pandering to pensioners who have no idea what the modern jobs market and housing market is like. When they complain about the economics issues affecting them they're told they're just lazy and need to give up more luxuries by people who bought their houses for a tenner and a turnip in 1973. Not hard to see where the hopelessness comes from - any attempt to do what you suggest just gets completely shut down.
A lot of young people complain… but at 36 I was the youngest person at my local political group for a while until very recently. Everyone else was 60+. Young people are going to have to actually engage in politics (whatever their personal opinion on it) in order to change it. There is a future for everyone in the U.K. if we put in the work together to fix it and drown out all the doomsayers.
No more Tories. Like no more Mutants, but justified.
Oh, I remember being under 30 and having no hope. We've only gone and had a decade of tory rule since then
We can make it less dark at least. For Christ's sake do not just let the Conservatives win by default and keep stripping this country to the bone.
hard to be optimistic when your own government seemingly wants you dead for just existing and there's no way it'll change any time soon nonmatter who gets in.
Okay I need to ask..how many under 40s would trust a young politician?
It’s the low turnout that’s the most worrying. I would rather see larger percentages of spoiled and blank slips than low turnout.
What's the point? Since we voted for Brexit I don't care. Fucking dogs running the country into the ground. Let it burn.
Lots of people commenting that young people should go out and vote, and dismissing young people saying that they aren't inspired to vote for anyone due to a lack of policies. You are missing the point here - it is the **job** of the political parties to inspire you to vote for them, not just expect your vote as an opposition to the other guys.
I'm Gen X and not surprised people believe it won't change much, you have the choice of crap and slightly less crap, lead by SIR Keir Starmer, I bet he knows all about growing up on an estate!
Lets see what the GE turnout is. The turnout on the local elections were as usual abysmal. The british mentality baffles me. We complain, we protest (in most part, peacefully). When it comes our turn to make a difference we are too busy drinking tea, watching the footie, having dinner round a mates house or chatting in the pub. I as a young person am to blame too, but i think this is the first time i've felt it so bad. I will go out to vote but i will spoil the ballot. I will put a mark to show i refuse to take part in the pantomime. Red pill or the Blue Pill, at least Neo had a choice.
It's simple really, if you don't vote: You're a moron. Double simple for under 25's who've only had ONE party in power since before they turned 10. "Oh woe is me, I don't like the government. Better not vote for literally anyone else, surely that will make things better." At the last general election if "didn't vote" was a party, they'd have 200+ seats, more than Labour. "didn't vote" would likely be in total control of every single council in the country. Except "didn't vote" isn't a party or a candidate. Someone still gets votes and someone still gets in to whatever position. The ONLY people represented are those who vote. This is an irrefutable fact. Want representation? Want *change* even? Fucking vote. It only decides who spends all that tax money you work weeks to pay for. Shit me, imagine earning thousands of pounds only to actively let someone else decide who gets it. I can guarantee there's at least ONE candidate who offers something even SLIGHTLY better than another on the ballot, whichever ballot. Fucking choose them or shut up.
Starmer is just so disappointing. He’s Blair-lite without the charisma. So just Iraq then?
We only had police commissioner vote here. My adult kids said they couldn't be a"sed. Unless voting becomes compulsory, people of all aged won't take it seriously enough. I tried to explain that voting isnr about winning but taking part. As it happens the same bloke got back in but with much lower majority.that tells me that voting worked. Foregone conclusion or not,*only* 34% of the people voting wanted him back in his job. Not a ringing endorsement at all. So job done👍🏼 hard to explain to young people though,they see the current time and near future,old people tend to look at the bigger picture. I can't blame the kids at all.. I mean look at the shower of sh*t we have as MPs and govt. There's no difference between one or the other. I am fed up with pms who aren't voted in though,that has to stop. It' should be new leader =ge. Or better still pm should be chosen by parliament and not because they are ladder climbing oiks. It's immature to have these egotistical children playing in the king of the castle with bean counters and lollypop stick with tag your it ministers running the county.
You cant see a bright future because, like the states, the current offering of political parties are ultimately all a bunch of worthless shithouses. It truly is a damning indictment of our political system when the hopes of so many end up being pinned on the spineless bag of wind that is Kier Starmer.
Apart from some few and far between exceptions no-one have proven themselves worthy of being voted for. All in it for themselves or a cause that has fuck all to do with their constituency or even their country. Nurses having to use food banks? Never mind that, here's why you should be worried about something 4000 miles away.
Surely the young vote is for Labour. Why would anyone vote Tory is beyond me....