After last year’s Brexit vote, younger Britons look to turn the tide

LONDON— Britain has had a decisive vote every year for the last three years. The frequency of general elections and referendums may have led to voting fatigue among some Britons, but certainly not among the youth.

In fact, it looks like they are just getting started.

Early polls suggested that youth turnout in Thursday’s general election had vastly increased compared to previous ones. Although official data will not be available for days, several estimates put the turnout among 18to 24-year-olds more than 20 percentage points higher than in the previous four national elections since 2001, in which only around 40 per cent of that age group cast ballots.

Polling experts also noted that many of the constituencies with significantly higher turnout were student towns.

Several contentious issues might have attracted younger Britons to the voting booths, including Prime Minister Theresa May’s willingness to change European human rights laws to combat terrorism, or accusations that she failed to react to students’ fears over their loans.

But the single most decisive issue for younger Britons in this election might date back one year. To some, the early numbers suggest that younger Britons wanted to revisit their country’s decision last year to leave the European Union.

Young, urban Britons especially rely on the EU for study or work abroad, and they overwhelmingly voted to remain.

“One of the reasons why youth turnout was so high this time is that young people recognized how important the decision to leave the European Union really was,” said Rhammel Afflick, a representative for the British Youth Council.

“And young people finally also realized that they could really influence the outcome of the election.”