The 2017 election has caused an array of disarrangement to what has already been seen in previous elections. The increase of young participants in the 2017 election has left us to ponder, why now? And ultimately, how? This is a new age for British politics, one where the youth have showcased the damage they can cause when enthusiastic and determined, or in other words, Corbyn aimed for the youth vote, and that’s exactly what he got. Below I will explain how exactly the 2017 electoral vote was a result of the existing youth-quake and how Labour’s large turnout of youth voters was achieved through their vigorous strategic social media campaign and how its impact will shape the future of British politics.
Prior to the 2017 vote, us millennial’s did not show a glimmer of interest in the world of politics, and if you think otherwise, all I can tell you is that the numbers don’t lie. Analytics from Ipsos Mori shows that the participation from ages 18-24 in the 2015 electoral vote was at a staggeringly low 43%, whereas the largest vote was submitted from the age demographic of 65+ at a colossal 78% (Ipsos Mori 2015). However, when we look at the elections in 2017 we see the so-called largest age gap in electoral history diminished, as seen in Figure 1. (Ipsos Mori 2017). The explanation for this age gap? Parties having a target audience. The Conservative party can thank the large turnout of its votes to its ‘grey voters’, the individuals who actually care about their political agendas and affiliations (Sloam 2007). Labour, on the other hand, chose to achieve victory by directing its campaign towards the untouched youths of Britain through what they know best, the internet. Although most statements regarding the lack of the youth vote is centered towards the idea of an increase in apathetic behavior and a sense of ‘alienation’ (Norris 2002), It seems that this generation is not lacking interest, they just haven’t been engaged properly; which is surely a factor that Mr. Corbyn took advantage of.
Figure 1. Statistics of UK General election 2017. (YouGov).
Amongst his strong desire for change and a current resentment towards austerity, how exactly did Corbyn reach us millennial’s? Social media. Corbyn attracted young voters by revolving Labours campaign around popular youth interests. One method was through the launch of the Grass Roots campaign of ‘Momentum’, which heavily attracted young supporters towards the Labour vote with its positive portrayal of Corbyn and his plans for Britain’s future. A more popular stance Corbyn took was identifying himself amongst notable youth figures, with names like JME (see Figure 2) and Stormzy being just a couple names that back the Labour candidate by creating a pro-voting registry website titled ‘grime4labour’, which upon entry you will be greeted with an instrumental attuned to one of Corbyn’s speeches, produced by a rather creative Labour supporter (see Figure 3). It’s popularity elevated when people were tweeting #grime4corbyn, which at one point was tweeted more than #LabourManifesto (Duggins 2017). By appealing to the interests of the younger generation, Corbyn’s campaign has encouraged young communities to have a voice, especially to those that would traditionally be overlooked, in this case, young London MC’s.
Figure 2. When JME Met Corbyn. (I-D).
Figure 3. “Corbyn Riddim”. (Soundcloud).
How was the 2017 election a youth-quake? The youth turnout from ages 18-24 skyrocketed from 43% in 2015 to a staggering 72% on election day in 2017, not mentioning the 63% turnout for the referendum vote. That’s over a 20% increase in two years (The Independent 2017). Researchers James Sloam and Muhammad Ehsan state that the election should not be mistaken for just a general increase in electoral participation, but should be credited as a ‘Youth Surge’, further crediting its boost and large turnout to Labour’s mode of campaigning via social media (Sloam & Ehsan 2017). In fact, Labour outgunned the Tories when it came to the digital vote for the first time in a general election (The Guardian 2017). Although Corbyn did not come out victorious, Corbyn showed what could be done with perseverance and dedication. And as a result, awoken a new generation of voters.
Though there are some valid points as to why the 2017 election was presumed a youth-quake, others may perceive it as a myth. According to the British Election Study, the quake never existed. The graph under Figure 4 shows that younger voters were actually less likely to cast a ballot unlike their older counterparts between 2015 to 2017 (BBC 2017). The ‘margin of error’ signifies a sampling error that does not reveal true poll results. In other words, the grander the margin of error, the less reliable the data. In this case, the increase was recorded at a mere 2.5%, an increase, but not as large as we all presumed. Thus, indicating that large changes to age turnouts are an ‘unlikely relationship’ (British Election Study 2017). In fact, no tabloid will mention how most of Labour’s vote actually belonged to ages 30-44.
Figure 4. Turnout by age group in 2015 and 2017. (British Election Study).
Ultimately the explanation to what was believed to be a youth-quake is actually just down to the actions of politicians, that success is achieved through perseverance. Get your popcorn ready for the next election, it should be interesting.
There are the facts. Now it’s time for your say.
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