53% of young people didn’t vote in the 2014 election.
The available stats tell us that 53% of 18-24 year olds didn’t vote in the last election. While this figure is a positive reverse in the decline from the 2011 election where over 60% of young people didn’t vote, it still illustrates the crisis in youth voter turnout.
Voter Turnout
18-24 year old voter turn out 1996
18-24 year old voter turn out 2011
18-24 year old voter turn out 2014
The 2014 election was the first year since 1996 that we have seen a reverse in the decline of youth voter turnout. However, the total amount of young people who participated in our democracy was still well under half.
The long term trend from 1996 to 2011 shows that every election year 4% fewer young people voted. The 2014 election was the first to reverse the decline, with 6% more young people turning up to the booths.
If this positive increase continues this election, over half of young people will be having their say in our country – an amount that hasn’t been seen in a long time. Ultimately, this is our goal.
Are young people starting to care again? We hope so!
The Virgin Voter Collective’s Goal is to continue the trend of increased youth voter turnout for 18-24 year olds.
To do this we need to get approximately 27,000 more people between 18-24 to vote. That’s just 6% of the total eligible.
Where did this information come from?
The 2014 and 2017 findings and data the VVC site uses has been sourced firstly through the work of Professor Jack Vowles of Victoria University comparing a statistically significant sample size of actual (1) raw electoral roll data and checked against actual marked rolls.
Source of the 42% is the Statistics New Zealand “Findings from New Zealand General Social Survey, 2011”. (2)
The VVC has analysed statistics sourced from the electoral roll and other data in the country (3) to extract the current enrolment statistics electorate by electorate for 18 – 24 year olds across the country. We have established enrolment figures as a percentage of the total number of eligible 18 – 24 year olds in the electorate. (4) (5)
- See slide five of Jack Vowles Valuing Your Vote presentation.
- Non-voters in 2011 general election: Findings from New Zealand General Social Survey.
- Statistics from electoral roll.
- Census results from 2013.
- General Election 2014 turnout statistics.
- Statistics accurate as at 23rd August 2017.