A LOOK BACK ON YOUTH VOTING CAMPAIGNS

As the sun rose on Monday morning, the votes had been counted and those involved in campaigns encouraging young people to vote arrived at the office and were wondering if their work had made an impact on the number of young people voting compared to the last election. Although the official youth voting figures are yet to be released, the huge effort to encourage more youth participation in the European elections cannot go unnoticed.

League of Young Voters (LYV) national campaigns reached out to young people in 25 EU countries and included a huge range of activities from videos to debates, and bus tours. Social media also played a significant role in campaigning, with Facebook pages of the national branches of LYV in Estonia and Romania each accumulating over 1,000 likes very quickly. Facebook and Twitter became platforms to inform young people about local activities and events and to share pictures of young people involved in the elections.

In addition to European LYV youth ambassadors, many young people trained and served as role models on a national level. These youth ambassadors ventured into their local communities to raise awareness about the elections, provide information about the EU and engage young people in debates about their future in Europe. In Sweden alone, 400 youth ambassadors were engaged!

Many national Leagues created their own campaigns and events, including Ireland and the “Pledge to Reg” campaign that encouraged young people to register to vote prior to the European Elections. The National Youth Council of Ireland hosted “pledge2reg” events on six different campuses and joined with the Union of Students in Ireland and Spun Out to run a “Promote the Vote” campaign and organise opportunities for youth to meet candidates and voice their opinions.

The League of Young Voters Malta was especially active in their campaign efforts, and was singled out as the best and most active branches of the League.

As a forum for young people to discuss their political priorities, there were many debates specifically for youth, including one at the Flemish Parliament in Belgium on 30 April. The debate was live streamed and broadcasted on a national radio station and a youth channel on national TV.

Although the final youth voter figures are not yet in, the European Youth Forum is looking forward to analysing these figures when they are released. The Youth Forum has been impressed with the wide variety and ambition of the national Leagues of Young Voters’ campaigns and we strongly urge the Leagues to continue their work engaging young voters on a national level.