BLOG 1 YOUNG PEOPLE AND POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT

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REMAIN OR LEAVE: WHY DOES YOUTH HAVE TO SUFFER IN THE UK?

“I couldn’t vote in what is probably the most important political decision the British people have made”

Since the UK’s divorce 31st January 2020 with the EU, it is clear that youth participation has become a lot more apparent and has increased throughout the country. Youth engagement since the issue of the European Union referendum in 2016, caused an outbreak in youth’s power in political beliefs. This increase in political outburst within youth’s is implying that they are more willing and want to fight for their future.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-36616028

 

The Brexit and EU referendum showed the distinctive divide between the millenials (under 36s) and the older generations, with age being a major factor in the voting intention. The younger individuals it was more likely for them to choose REMAIN which was supported by the 71% statistic with the age range of 18-24 (Kingman 2017). Age wasn’t the only factor influencing voters opinion we acknowledged that social class and the area you lived in played a vital component in the referendum and brexit. Evidence was shown in statistics which established that around 59% of total leave votes came associated with middle class (Brexit: working class revolt or middle class outlook?, 2021).

Younger voters have often been associated as being non-political and apathetic (Keating & Melis, 2017) however, this period surrrounding the EU referendum was an spark for youngsters to speak about their future and how some teenagers weren’t allowed to vote due to the law surrounding election and democracy. Young people tend to keep away from uneccessary concerns such as; party affiliation or the traditional forms of engagement. Additonally, we engage in politics through various ways for example petitions, protests and voicing your opinion on social media. Being a young individual myself it allowed me to approach Brexit and EU referendum with singular issues rather than having a whole arena to worry about. This political movement created an great example for youngsters to engage in politics and their country with traditional and non-traditional ways.

We can see the distinct generational patterns in the voting for the EU referedum which established that there was an interesting predicament. This election was analysed by sociologists and claimed that socioeconomic factors explained for the large percentage of individuals who wanted to LEAVE! We also learnt that by indiviudals leaving the European Union it presented a sense of authority through (protests, petitions and social media platforms) for those who left behind by immigration, globalisation and social change (Kingman 2017).

Furthermore, to explore the patterns to why individuals left the EU sociologists ran two regression analyses to find out why??? Additionally they included a diverse range of demographic characteristics from a dataset such as; age, education, household income, ethncity, disability and etc. The second regression involved whether or not individuals felt “British” or “European”. The results portrayed that being highly educated or being non-white were to characteristics which created the largest influence on someone to not Leave the EU. On the other hand, milennials voted Remain so strongly becasue they are the most educated and ethnically most diverse generation in Britain, this is because we have a far more pluralistic opinion of national identity in comparion to the pre-1945 generation (Kingman, 2017).

UK General Elections: turnout by age (Data via British Electoral Study in Commons Briefing papers CBP-8060)

The data table below demonstrates that 64% referendum turnout amongst 18-24 year olds has been much higher than the previous elections. Since 2015 youth has been more involved in politics due to the exposure to social media which is allowing opinions and views to be debated and put across. The general election in 2017 then implies a significant surge in participation, with turnout amongst 18-24 year olds increasing from 43% to 64%.

United Nations COVID19

The increase of young people voting is hugely affected by social media which is a mode of communication in people’s lives which they are using for various reasons. Despite their being a decline in youth engagement in politics ‘it is often suggested that social media can provide solution to this challenge’ (Keating & Melis, 2017: 877). Social media platforms such as; Twitter, Facebook and Instagram all allow youngsters to see trending hot topics. In situations such as the global pandemic and Black Lives Matter Movement young people used social media to support their mental health and take a stand for those who need it. We also figured that 70% of young people got informed about elections through online platforms whilst 36% of those indiviudals reposted the political content. We can acknowledge that from above that social media platforms have created a easier way for politics and opinions to be heard without having to deal with backlash and hate.

Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

 

“I WOULD DELETE DONALD TRUMP. I WOULD DELETE HILARY CLINTON. I WOULD DELETE THE MAN WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR BREXIT” – MATT HARDY

Bibliography:

  • Keating, A. and Melis, G. (2017). Social Media and Youth Political Engagement: Preaching to the converted or prividing a new voice for youth?. The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, [online] 19(4), pp.877-894. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1369148117718461
  • Kingman, D. (2017). Generation Remain: Understanding the Millenial Vote. [online] http://www.if.org.uk/. Available at: http://www.if.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Generation-Remain_final_October_2017.compressed.pdf
  • Sloam, J. (2007). Rebooting Democracy: Youth Participation in Politics in the UK. Parliamentary Affairs, [online] 60(4), pp.548-567. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/pa/gsm035
  • Sloam, J. and Ehsan, M. (2017). Youth Quake: Young Peope and the 2017 General Election. [online] http://www.if.org.uk. Available at: http://www.if.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Youth-Quake_Final.pdf
  • Discover Society. 2021. Brexit: working class revolt or middle class outlook?. [online] Available at: <https://discoversociety.org/2019/07/03/brexit-working-class-revolt-or-middle-class-outlook/> [Accessed 21 February 2021].
  • BBC News. 2021. EU referendum: The result in maps and charts. [online] Available at: <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-36616028> [Accessed 24 February 2021].
  • The Conversation. 2021. Britain’s young people are getting back into politics at last. [online] Available at: <https://theconversation.com/britains-young-people-are-getting-back-into-politics-at-last-76682> [Accessed 24 February 2021].

 

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