Although official voter turnout figures are not consistently available from electoral authorities across regions, data collected by surveys conducted in different regions are sketching a discouraging picture.[i] Findings mentioned in “Youth Civic Engagement,” a 2016 UN World Youth report, reveal that voter turnout has decreased in all democracies since the 1980s and that the turnout decline is concentrated among youth.[ii] Survey results from a sample of 33 countries indicate that close to 44 percent of young adults aged 18–29 years “always vote,” compared with almost 60 per cent of all citizens.[iii] The corresponding rate is more than 70 per cent among those over the age of 50. See Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), 2018, Youth Participation in National Parliaments. (ACE Election Materials)
[i] According to the 2015 European Youth Forum Report, young people have been largely absent from national elections in the 28 member states of the European Union (EU). Almost 60 per cent of eligible voters between 16 or 18 and 24 years old opted not to vote in their country’s most recent national election. Tomaž Deželan, “Young People and Democratic Life in Europe: What Next After the 2014 European Elections?,” (European Youth Forum, 2015), www. youthup.eu/app/uploads/2015/11/YFJ_YoungPeopleAndDemocraticLifeInEurope_B1_web-9e4bd8be22.pdf.
Nearly two-thirds (65 per cent) of the overall African population is younger than 35, according to the 2015 AfroBarometer. Yet only 55 per cent of African youth said they voted in their last national election. Considerable regional differences exist, however. In East Africa, 65 per cent of young people participated in their country’s most recent elections, as opposed to only 49 per cent of youth in Northern Africa. AfroBarometer, Dispatch no. 41, August 12, 2015, http://afrobarometer.org/sites/default/files/publications/Dispatches/ab_r6_dispatchno41.pdf.
The 2014 Asia Barometer Survey indicates that youth turnout rate in the region is generally 15–30 per cent lower than that of people older than 35. Generational differences in voting are striking in Malaysia and Singapore. In both countries, only a third of youth voted in the most recent national elections, compared with an overwhelming majority of older citizens. UNDP, Youth and Democratic Citizenship in East and South East Asia: Exploring Political Attitudes of East and South-East Asian Youth through the Asian Barometer Survey, (UN Asia-Pacific Regional Centre, 2014), https://issuu.com/undp/docs/rbap-dg-2014-youth-n-democratic-cit/69.
In Latin America, the 2013 FLACSO Chile and International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) report on youth political participation noted that people under 30 participate less than those over 30 in all presidential elections on the continent. According to the report, the greatest difference in participation between young and older people existed in Mexico, where 59 per cent of young people did not vote compared with just 19 per cent of older citizens. Other gaps included in: Panama, where 57 per cent of youth did not participate compared with 17 per cent of older citizens; the Dominican Republic (61 per cent compared with 13 percent); and Chile (71 per cent compared with 17 percent). FLACSO Chile and International IDEA, “Youth and Political Participation in Latin America, Current State and Challenges,” document prepared for the Annual Democracy Forum “Youth Participation and Elections,” 2013.
[ii] UN-DESA, World Youth Report 2016: Youth Civic Engagement, (UN, 2016), https://doi.org/10.18356/a4137e60-en.
[iii] Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tunisia, Zimbabwe (Africa); Cyprus, Estonia, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden (Europe); Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay (South America); Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Republic of Korea, Taiwan Province of China, Thailand (South-East Asia); India (Southern-Central Asia); and the United States (North America).
In Asia, research indicates that in most of the region’s countries, young people identify less with political parties than do older citizens. The exceptions were Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, where political parties have stronger links with youth.
