Trying to turn youth voter 'apathy into action' in Windsor

Youth and voting is a chicken-egg problem. Experts say youth don't vote because politicians rarely speak about issues they care about. But, politicians don't talk about youth issues because young people don't vote.

"Largely policies are directed toward older people. The Baby Boomers tend to vote, so the leaders speak to older people, their policies speak to and are targeted to older people," said Sean Simpson, vice-president of Ipsos Reid. "It's a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy — if every student went out and voted the leaders would pander to that vote a little bit more than they do now."

In the last federal election in 2011, an estimated 38.8 per cent of youth, aged 18-24, voted, according to Elections Canada. In comparison, an estimated 75.1 per cent of Canadians, aged 65-74, voted.

On campus

A group of students at the University of Windsor is trying to change the national conversation by getting their peers out to the polls this fall for the federal election. 

Matthew Dunlop, with the University of Windsor Students' Alliance, is part of the group set to launch an initiative called #UElect in late August, in partnership with the Canadian Federation of Students, who have their own campaign encouraging students to vote called #Itsnotsecret. 

"It's to turn apathy into action and to get them out to vote on Oct. 19, or in advance polling" said Dunlop.

The student politician, along with about seven other students, plan on encouraging students to vote by employing several strategies, including: handing out flyers, having a political-cartoon contest, class talks, some videos featuring students talking about why they are going to vote and their feelings on the political parties.

There will also likely be a polling station near the Windsor campus in the fall. And the group plans to help get the message out that students can choose to vote for their home riding, or the riding where they are living and studying. Either way, the key is making sure students know they need proof of residency to vote in the election, he noted.

'Their vote does matter'

Dunlop says the major reason youth don't vote is because they feel their vote doesn't matter.

"I think they feel like their issues are not on the table, like the key things they want solutions to, that their vote doesn't actually doesn't make that much of a difference," said Dunlop. "But it does, their vote does matter." 

Simpson agrees with Dunlop, saying that if students did vote it really would matter because there is no one clear leader at this early point in the campaign. 

"If, in fact, students went out and voted en masse and voted for the Liberals or the NDP in an effort to stop the Tories from winning, it actually could have an impact," said Simpson. 

He said the impact of the youth vote would be particularly felt in smaller places with large student populations, such as Windsor, Kingston and Waterloo.​

Watch University of Windsor students discuss voting in the federal election in the video above.