Voting is only one way in which young people can impact on the issues which affect them and their communities - and young Londoners are far from apathetic. However, in a democracy it is the vote that counts.
Unfortunately, young people aged 18-24 are a demographic who consistently appear to be less engaged in the formal democratic process relative to older age groups. Last year only half of young people were registered to vote and of those only 43 per cent turned out to vote at the General Election. This trend isn’t a new one either - in the last five general elections voter turnout for young people averaged at 48.5 per cent – this is compared with the over 65’s at 75 per cent.
What is also clear is that the sooner people get into the voting habit the more likely they are to vote throughout the rest of their lives. The later they leave it to vote for the first time, the less likely they are to vote throughout the rest of their lives. So no opportunity to communicate to young people the importance of registering and voting can be missed.
In a month’s time (23 June) the UK will be voting in the referendum on whether we remain or leave the EU. This decision will have a substantial impact on future generations of Londoners and yet the numbers of those registered to vote remain low. Research undertaken by TNS on behalf of the Regional Counting Officer for London showed that 19 per cent of 18-24 year, or nearly 1 in 5 young people say they are not registered to vote.
So if you know someone who’s not registered to vote they need to know that if they want to have their say in the European Referendum, they need to be registered to vote by 7 June.
To register to vote go to www.gov.uk/register -to-vote
Cllr Peter John OBE, London Councils Executive Member for Children, Skills and Employment