Young people vote Lib Dem in mock local elections

12.59.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Mon 22nd May 2006

The Lib Dems have won the 2006 Y (Youth) Vote Mock Local Elections, gaining 30 per cent of the votes of the young people who took part. The Labour party and the Green Party were tied in second place. The results, published by the Hansard Society, and supported by The Electoral Commission and the Department for Education and Skills, show a clear difference between the political attitudes of voters in the mock elections and their adult counterparts.

The Lib Dems gained nearly a third of school pupils' votes, with Labour and the Greens on 25 per cent. The Tones' recent local election gains did not translate into a win in the mock elections, where they only received 15 per cent of the young people's votes. Approximately 100,000 pupils at more than 200 schools across the UK registered to take part in the voting, aimed at boosting young people's interest in politics.

Jo Swinson MP - ""The Y Vote project is a good thing for democracy in this country as a whole. It gives young people the chance to get involved in the excitement of an election, and fosters in them the habit of voting"

Commenting on the results Liberal Democrats MP Jo Swinson said "These mock elections are certainly good news for the Liberal Democrats. They show that our key aim of creating a fairer, greener, more democratic society resonates with young people, and point to the Liberal Democrats as the party of the future."

"The Y Vote project is a good thing for democracy in this country as a whole. It gives young people the chance to get involved in the excitement of an election, and fosters in them the habit of voting, which hopefully means they will continue to participate in politics when they get older."

"Lowering the voting age to 16 is often discussed as a way of increasing young people's participation in politics, and I believe that at 16, people should be given the right to vote. Today's politicians are in danger of failing to act to prevent a generation of non-voters growing up without the basic political habits that keep our democracy in good health."

The Y Vote Mock Elections project is supported by The Electoral Commission and the Department for Education and Skills. The percentage vote gained by each party in the election was: Liberal Democrats 30%; Labour 25%; Green 25%; Conservative 15%; UKIP 5%.

Related Links:

Y (Youth) vote mock elections website homepage.

The Electoral Commision.

The Hansard Society.