Broad issues such as disengagement
from or distrust of the electoral process and lack of political awareness can
affect the turnout of youth voters. Practical barriers, such as the following
factors, can also increase the likelihood of young people not taking part in
electoral processes:
- complex administrative procedures to
obtain required ID documents
- long distances to travel to vote
- unfavorable opening hours of voting
stations during work and school hours.
Notwithstanding the fact that in some
cases youth are the most mobile segment of a society, and even sometimes
because of this fact, many youth, especially from marginalized groups, face
access barriers to electoral processes. Young people that are transitioning
into adulthood are often moving between households and employment or study
locations.
In many contexts, young women and
young persons with disabilities are facing particular challenges to cast their
votes such as cultural norms that prescribe that women should not be involved
in politics or that politics is the domain of men; concerns about the safety of
journeys to voting centers and security there; illiteracy levels that are still
disproportionally high among women, among other hurdles.
To counter youth-specific obstacles
to voting, EMBs should explore different options to engage youth voters and
make voting more convenient during elections, including:
- suitable numbers of well-located voting stations, with clear information on their whereabouts and opening times.
Consider extended opening hours for improved accessibility
- voting stations that create a sense of energy, community, and
engagement. Australian polling stations hold sausage sizzles (coined “democracy
sausages”) – a tradition on election days
- first-time voters: voting for the first-time can be
intimidating, so ensure messaging conveys that voting is easy, and that help is
available
- early voting (advance polling or pre-poll voting),
enabling voters to lodge their vote prior to election day
- multiple voting days to provide more flexibility about
when to vote (although the disadvantages to this include increased potential
for electoral fraud and increased costs to staff).
- absentee voting, allowing young voters to present at
different polling stations if they work or study away from their usual voting
district
- designated voting days, where elections are scheduled on a
national holiday or a weekend, to maximize voter turnout. In Australia, where
voting is compulsory, employers must give their employees time off work to vote
on election day
- effective “how to” electoral materials at voting stations that help to educate youth voters on the mechanics of voting and assist
them in the voting process
- voting stations on university campuses or in youth centers
to make voting convenient and easy for young voters
Example: In 2015, Elections Canada set up 17
temporary polling stations at 39 university and college campuses, 13 at
Aboriginal Friendship Centers and two at youth community centers in urban
areas.[i]
Example: In the US, the Voter Friendly Campus
program was launched in 2016 to help universities and institutions develop
plans to coordinate administrators, faculty, and student organizations in civic
and electoral engagement. It was launched to counter the declining level of
student voters, and to develop strategies to mitigate the barriers to voting
that exist for many US students.
Example: The electoral commission in Botswana
responded to the numerous challenges young people identified, such as the long
queues they faced during elections, by introducing help desks, which were
managed by youth, at voting stations during the 2014 elections. The name of the
voter was checked against the voters roll and the voter informed of the page
number before proceeding to vote, facilitating a smoother flow.[ii]
Pre-election, EMBs may also consider
targeted strategies to connect with and educate young voters, incorporating
ideas from the following list.
- Outreach campaigns for first-time
voters celebrate voting as a rite of passage. These could include a letter and
education material from EMBs or governments with education material and
information on how to register and vote.
- Education program for young voters,
within schools and elsewhere, can cover the role and purpose of elections in
democracies, the election process itself, how to vote, and the rights and
responsibilities of voters.
- Communication campaigns designed to
appeal to young voters can use: online platforms; multimedia channels,
including radio, television, and print; artistic and cultural programs, using
concerts, music, plays, and street theatre.
- Other mechanisms to inform young
voters include: information centers, telephone hotlines, advertising campaigns
using billboards and advertising on transport, direct mailouts, and employment
of youth ambassadors.
- Social media and apps can reach young
voters who use these as a primary source of communication and information. For
example, in the US, the app TurboVote keeps members updated with elections and
voting requirements across all US states. It sends reminders when voters need
to register and vote, and it can assist with absentee votes.
Example: In the lead-up to the 2017 general
elections in Kenya, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC)
deployed a dynamic youth outreach strategy to achieve peaceful participation
and increase youth voter turnout. “Youth Vote” (YVOTE) was a digital media and
face-to-face outreach initiative to educate, engage, and motivate young people.
It was also designed to bring young people into active roles in governance and
improve accessibility of voter information to help youth make informed choices.
Peace messages were disseminated throughout the campaign’s digital ads and
on-the-ground activities. The face-to-face campaign reached over 100,000 people
and the digital campaign reached over 1.1 million people.[iii] See Annex: IFES Case Study – YVOTE Public Affairs Campaign.
Example: In Tunisia, the UNDP applied a
variety of innovative tools to reach out to youth prior to the 2011 elections.
These included an election song, “Enti Essout” (“You Are the Voice”), which
achieved more than 100,000 free downloads. Additionally, a voter education
game, “DemocraTweet,” aimed to mobilize youth in partnership with Tunisia’s
leading radio station, Radio Mosaique FM. It was played by 10,000 people over three
weeks. Three voter education campaigns focused on registration, late-voter
registration, and voter mobilization, including through media messages and
billboards. The campaign reached out to illiterate and rural youth. The
awareness of young people about the electoral process increased and voter
turnout was 76 per cent.[iv]
Example: The TurboVote Challenge is a
project of Democracy Works, a non-partisan, non-profit organization based in
the US. The TurboVote Challenge uses partners to encourage their employees,
customers, and communities to participate in elections, making it easier for
them to do so. See Annex: 2016 TurboVote Challenge Partner Implementation
Examples.
Other incentive and Inducements
Example: In Japan, some restaurants and shops
provide discount coupon if the voters who have voted and can show the evidence
of their having voted, are given an ‘election discount’ as a way to promote
turnout.[v]
Example: In the US, an experiment was
conducted to see whether young people who “pledge to vote” are more likely to
turn out to vote. This experiment was testing psychological theories of
political behaviour, exploring whether making commitments to follow through and
perform a certain activity actually results in activity being carried out.
Making the commitment indeed increased voter turnout in the experiment
conducted. The experiment has interesting implications for voter turnout mobilization
efforts.[vi]
Providing funds to youth-based CSOs is also a
practical way of supporting youth engagement. EMBs could provide competitions
for micro grants/awards for youth to develop their own awareness campaigns, for
example. This builds skills that youth can apply to their future careers, and
at the same time contributes to electoral processes.
[ii] Comment
by Masego Ndlovu Kgalemang, Principal Information Education Officer,
Independent Electoral Commission of Botswana, quoted in IDEA, Increasing Youth Participation throughout
the Electoral Cycle: Entry Points for Electoral Management Bodies, report
on Round Table November 24–26, 2015, Pretoria, South Africa, (International
IDEA, 2016), 13, https://www.idea.int/publications/catalogue/increasing-youth-participation-throughout-electoral-cycle-entry-points.
