[heero_yuy]

Originally Posted by

British election study

In the wake of the surprise outcome of the 2017 election people began to look for an explanation for Labour’s unexpectedly good performance. One explanation quickly became prominent: Jeremy Corbyn had mobilised previously disengaged young voters, who had turned out in droves to vote Labour.

This claim is largely based on anecdotes. Corbyn appears to be particularly popular amongst the young, often photographed surrounded by young people. Chants of ‘oh Jeremy Corbyn’ echoed around the Glastonbury festival, and Labour’s social media strategy is cited as energising young voters in droves.

There was likely a small increase in turnout across a large age range, with a slightly larger rise for those aged 30-40. The margin of error means that we cannot rule out a small increase (or decrease) in youth turnout in 2017. We can be confident, though, that there was no dramatic surge in youth turnout of the sort suggested by some other surveys. In short, there was no ‘youthquake’.

Interesting reading now that the analysis has been done.