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Our democracy is failing young people
28/09/2026
Hania Orszulik is an Academic Skills teacher at the Centre for International Training and Education, working mostly with students at the College of Business. She organises local events which discuss issues related to politics and democracy in the UK. Contact hrco1@leicester.ac.uk for details.
Why Young Voices are Missing from Political Debate
Another academic year begins and our campus is once again bustling with excited energy as the next generation of young people make this momentous transition into this new phase of life.
These young people are the workforce of the future. In the coming few years, we will need them to keep our public services running and maintain the economic activity of the country. But this vital demographic group is under-represented in our democracy.
At the time of the last General Election in 2024, there were 12.9 million people aged between 15 and 29, not all of whom were of voting age. This compares with 17.5 million people aged over 60, according to data published by Statistica in 2025.
This reality poses pressing questions for the functioning of our democracy. Politicians tend to pander to the demands of larger demographic groups, even if the concerns of other groups are more invested in the long-term interests of the country. This strategy makes sense from an electoral point of view, but it undermines democracy and hampers the Government’s ability to drive policy platforms that work towards the greater good of the country. Demographic imbalances award greater political influence to dominant groups compared with minority groups. This is particularly damaging when the demands of the dominant group work against the needs and interests of others. Take Brexit as a case in point, which was mainly driven by the demands of the elderly voting population according to a 2019 YouGov survey, but resulted in the loss of employment, education and travel opportunities for young people.
A survey conducted by the electoral commission found that the political issues of greatest concern to young people are employment, finances, housing and education. It’s not difficult to see why young people prioritise these issues. With their entire career ahead of them, young people are more likely to be starting out with little experience, lower savings and with a greater need for a social safety net as they find their feet in the world of work. Factor in ever-increasing student debt and the potential loss of entry level employment following the rise of AI, and it’s no wonder this so-called ‘snowflake’ generation are feeling despondent about the future.
While some sections of the media obsess over issues of welfare spending, tax cuts and immigration, it should be incumbent on all of us, as voting citizens, to demand policy and legislation that protects and invests in young people. They simply don’t have the numbers to make these demands for themselves.