Attention is drawn to the percentage of abstinence of the youngest. Experts say the problem is not a lack of interest, but the need to look at other forms of political participation.

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They are seen as decision makers for the future, a generation that can make a difference, but the relationship of young people with politics is not easy, and the difficulties are not today. The reasons cited are issues of representation and priorities that are not in line with their ideals, and experts say there is a need to take a different look at politics and how young people can be politically active.

The abstinence rate among young voters was the topic of discussion and research “Young people in Portugal today: who they are, what they think and how they feel”, conducted by the Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation (FFMS) and surveyed 4,904 young people between the ages of 18 and 34 in a representative a population of 2.2 million young people shows that 14% of young people have never voted in any election. On the other side of the coin are 53% of young people who ensure they vote whenever an election is held.

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“I think young people are understandably disappointed in some of their political leaders.”, begins with an attempt to vindicate Howard Williamson, professor of European youth policy at the University of South Wales.

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Sofia Serra Silva, Assistant Research Fellow at the Institute of Social Sciences at the University of Lisbon, believes that the role of young people in politics and how they participate in it is a topic that deserves more attention than what has been given to it. “A very recent study focuses on this category of excluded young people, which is prevalent in the Portuguese context. This is troubling, ”says the expert, who argues that“ strategies need to be developed to try to understand why we have young people who are not satisfied with the functioning of democracy, who have little trust in the government and who, at the same time, may be from – for this we do not know, we participate a little “.

Howard Williamson, who attended the Novos Encontros Juventude conference last weekend in November in Lisbon, says “this whole issue of young people’s political participation is complex,” especially on the part of “strong supporters.” votes ”, which remain skeptical about the decision-making ability of young people. “[Muitos dizem que] They [os jovens] not educated enough to vote. Well, this is a joke, because most people are not educated enough to vote, ”continues the Briton, an expert on youth policy.

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Portuguese youth and politics

Among the data presented by the FFMS study, although the majority of respondents indicate the presence of political convictions (78% of women compared to 84% of men), the interest is not so great: “in the scale used – 27%. women indicated values ​​above 6 compared to 34% of men, ”the investigation says.

“I would like us to see us as an electoral bloc,” says 21-year-old Adriana Cardoso. A young pharmaceutical graduate currently pursuing a master’s degree in the same field considers himself impartial and argues that this should not at all be a reason to abandon political expression.

“The type of politics of people my age is more independent, we use podcasts and our own projects,” continues Adriana Cardoso, stressing that “politics is not limited to parties”.

In terms of voting, 21% of young people say they voted in most elections, while 12% admitted to having voted in several. Although young women represent a smaller percentage of interests and political convictions, the truth is that they are the ones who exercise their right to vote in elections: 56% compared to 49% of young men. The study also states that “there are slightly more men than women who believe that democracy in Portugal is currently working well or very well (40% versus 37%).”

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The FFMS study shows that 87% of Portuguese youth have a political position, mainly in the center, but women tend to tend towards the extreme left and men towards the extreme right.

In this regard, the young woman admits that “often we vote against our economic interests because we identify with social causes,” even because, as she argues, “a party that does not try to solve a problem or does not talk about housing, not suitable for me as a voter, and it shouldn’t work for my generation. “

New forms of civic and political participation

Sofia Serra Silva says young people’s interest in politics and democracy is not on the line, and argues that it is important to look at political action beyond voting. “The issue of electoral participation is, of course, also important. But electoral participation is often perceived as the pinnacle of political participation, ”which, according to the researcher, is a limiting factor.

“What is happening is that we know that young people are increasingly giving preference to other forms of participation, forms based on themes and reasons that are close to them. There is even a British researcher who called these new forms of political participation “do it ourselves,” meaning that they represent a repertoire of action and political participation, collectively led by young people and reinvented, rejuvenating from the traditional repertoire of political participation, often for outside international political institutions “– explains a junior researcher at the Institute of Social Sciences at the University of Lisbon.

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Young people appear to be more focused on signing petitions, participating in demonstrations, and buying or boycotting the action for political reasons, according to the data presented in the portrait by the FSFM, coordinated by Laura Sagnier and Alex Morell. When it comes to signing petitions, 40% of young people surveyed said they did so last year. As for “boycotting or buying certain products for political or environmental reasons,” the study says, 70% of those who chose this form of action “also signed the petition,” the portrait says.

The petition, according to Sophia Serra Silva, “is a tool created within the current political system and traditional institutions,” but the researcher identifies other forms of political and civic action by young people, especially on the Internet, “always very moving for reasons and themes (. ..) what we call problem-oriented, which mobilize part of the youth and, within these themes and reasons, have reinvented some forms of participation that are more innovative, creative, often digital. “

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For Adriana Cardoso, social media is a way to get politically active. “If the sides do not open up for us [jovens] we have to use these tools as a form of complaint, “because, as he guarantees,” the person who is good at Instagram and Twitter has a giant platform to showcase their ideas. ” However, many young people leave and do not express themselves politically, which Adriana considers a sign of impostor syndrome: “We think that we will never be 100% ready to talk about one topic, but I doubt that a student who goes to the same program all the weeks be 100% ready. “

the role of youth in politics

British researcher Howard Williamson, an expert on youth policy, says that, indeed, “we need democratic representation of youth in decision-making, but we also need what I call categorical representation of youth. We need young people with experience in government agencies. We need young people from the criminal justice system. They are desperately underrepresented in democratic participation, and yet they know their world better than anyone else. And we also have to listen to them. ” However, Howard Williamson himself calls for balance: “young people need a place at the table, but they should not have the only place at the table.”

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The lack of representation both in the Assembly of the Republic and in the places for television commentary is cited by the young Adriana Cardoso as one of the main shortcomings. “We need to be more demanding and smarter in how we consume,” he says.

“They lock us up in ‘young girls’, in national youth councils. (…) There seems to be an idea that young people should not be invited into politics. We are intellectually limited, it seems that young people can only talk about young people. “– complains Adriana Cardoso.

Howard Williamson advocates for more space for youth, but calls for balance. “I believe we need to involve young people much more, but also in partnership with older people. We need people with a certain experience, like me, but young people also have new, fresh and energetic ideas, and we must accept them. It’s good for politics, it’s good for young people, it’s good for society. “

Recognizing that voting continues to be the most direct form of election and representation, Sofia Serra Silva says new forms of young people’s action can also make a difference, aside from creating debate. “It seems to me that the visibility of protests and campaigns led by young people has gained more prominence in recent years, and thanks to this visibility in the media, in fact, when they are organized and all together, [os jovens] they manage to put a certain topic and matter on the political and media agenda ”. Even because, he continues, “with the media coverage of these campaigns by young people, there is a growing awareness, not only for them, but for society as a whole, that they have a role to play and that they play an important role. play”.

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How to bring youth closer to politics

Bringing young people closer to politics has been a regular struggle, but more commitment and precision are needed, say experts interviewed by CNN Portugal.

Sophia Serra Silva argues that it is necessary to “foster more interest, more trust in institutions, greater satisfaction with the functioning of democracy.” However, it is equally or more important to ensure that “these attitudes are translated into behavior, that is, more active participation” on the part of young people.

In order to “fight here on these two fronts, relationships on the one hand, and behavior on the other,” it is “no doubt” important to bet on literacy in schools, with a discipline of citizenship that actually speaks of political citizenship, which let’s talk about the importance of democratic institutions, about the balance of power, let’s talk about the party system, let’s talk about the European Union, and there must be democratic literacy to promote citizenship education and youth participation, ”the researcher says.

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To bring young people closer to politics and, above all, to contribute to the dissemination of knowledge on this issue, the introduction of National Plan for Democratic Literacy, “Under the leadership of the National Commissioner and with a wide program of activities, especially in schools and among young people, similar to what is being done under the National Plan for Reading and the National Plan for the Arts,” declares the document of the Program XXII of the Constitutional Government for 2019-2023, in which also announced the intention to conduct “the study of the Constitution at all levels of education with an increasing degree of depth.” However, to date, there has been no progress with this measure.

CNN Portugal contacted the government ministry and the president, who said that “the government intends to begin the process of creating this plan in 2022,” but did not say when the National Plan for Democratic Literacy would formally go into effect. …