According to a study by the University of Otago, e-voting can have a very positive effect when it comes to boosting voter turnout among young people. In this, Dr. Whitfield focused on figuring out whether young people would be more involved in voting in three ways: if e-voting is available, if voting is compulsory, or if the age limit will be lowered.
Participants say that an app that listed candidate information and allowed e-voting could increase interest in voting while effectively increasing the number of votes. Dr. Kyle Whitfield received his degree in Business Administration from Otago Business School and interviewed 18-24 year olds for his research.
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The number of young voters in New Zealand is small and does not differ from other countries. Thus, the problem is getting in the way of a healthier democracy. Dr. Whitfield believes that the low percentage of voters between the ages of 18 and 24 could undermine the political process in the country.
“The lack of information, the feeling that local elections are second-order elections, and the feeling that young people have no real influence on the political process ultimately lead to such a low turnout,” he added.
According to him, e-voting attracts young people and thus can increase their participation in voting so much that they feel disagreement about compulsory voting; opposes lowering the voting age to 16, arguing that it is premature.
In addition, other points of the survey showed that young people felt that they did not receive enough information to make decisions. That is, more than 90% of respondents believed that they should be better informed about civil rights, and 17 taxpayers said they knew nothing about politics, voting or government activities.
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A source: Phys
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