Youth Political Engagement Research Paper

Increasing Youth Political Engagement

An issue that Canadian politicians face is the decreasing rate of youths who participate in voting. This lack of youth engagement creates implications on Canadian democracy and this issue needs to be solved.

Firstly, it is important to address the issue. Youths in Canada are categorized as people between the ages of 18-24. In the past years, youths show a lack of interest in participating in politics. Youths have the smallest voter turn out in terms of elections. In the 2011 federal election, only 38.8% of youths participated while older age groups were most likely to vote. This lack of youth political engagement creates implications for Canadian democracy.

After understanding the issue, identify the

This means that no youths can be found in Canadian politics. This inadequate representation of youths makes politics not relatable to them. Older members of parliament have different views and opinions than young citizens and this is reflected in the decisions politicians make. Youths do not feel as though their opinions are being considered and it is important in politics to make them feel involved.

In order to solve this, it is critical to get more youths involved in formal bodies of politics. Youths must be shown that they have a voice and that it matters. If not, youths do not see a reason to participate if their thoughts are only going to be disregarded. A way of getting youths involved would be to create a youth council that works with politicians and actively participates in discussions regarding political matters so that their views and opinions can be heard.

Different Demographics

Politicians often focus on older generations and do not pay much attention to the needs of youths. Many politicians who run in elections advertise incentives for older citizens to vote such as promises of better pay, lower taxes, family aid, and more. Little is offered to youths to get them