Me talking about young people voting back in May 2024.
There are roughly 15.5m eligible voters aged 18-35,
..giving 16&17 year olds the right to vote could probably add ~1.5m voters to that number.
It’s their future, they could define policy, and I want to help them @mvtfwd.bsky.social
#VoteAt16
And we'd love to see #voteat16 combined with really strong mechanisms for including young people in *local* decision-making. This was another key theme of our recent report + we include an example from North Tyneside Council on how this can be done discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10...
The intro of #voteat16 for future UK gen elections will generate lots of debate + headlines. But worth keeping an eye on the data we already have on this topic + on experiences in Scotland. This might have more impact on long-term trends (voting habits, youth inclusion) than on next general election
If this happens and the voting age is lowered to 16, I fully support it. Young people deserve a say in their future 🗳️
#VoteAt16 #YouthVoice #FutureVoters #DemocracyMatters #LowerTheVotingAge #YoungVotesCount
Image shows young people taking a selfie with the RT Hon Hilary Benn MP.
Image shows the young people wearing Vote at 16 t-shirts, pictured in the Cloisters.
Image shows the RT Hon Hilary Benn MP listening to students speak.
Image shows the RT Hon Hilary Benn MP listening to students speak.
Today we welcomed 15 young people to campus as part of a @politicsinaction.bsky.social #VoteAt16 event.
They spoke to the Secretary of State for #NorthernIreland, the RT Hon Hilary Benn MP, about the issues that matter to them most in our society.
Nice work, everyone! Our future is in safe hands.
I don't think more political education should be a limiting factor to #VoteAt16.
Yes, we need better civic education but, if people get registered to vote, they've already shown themselves to be more politically engaged than a lot of people.
#VoteAt16Ireland
