Young voters aren’t disengaged by choice, we’re missing in parliament

Mention the word politics to a young person and in all likelihood, the response will be an eye roll.

Our disenchantment is no secret, nor is it particularly new. In the 2014 Senate Occasional Lecture Series, Aaron Martin reported “electoral politics is becoming less attractive to the young”. Nearly a decade before that, the then Governor-General Michael Jeffery warned of a “worrying trend of disengagement” among younger voters.

Anthony Albanese and Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather have clashed repeatedly in parliament over housing policy.Credit: Fairfax Media

A recurrent set of reasons are usually cited when justifying this disillusionment. Main contenders include difficulty with homeownership and frustration around slow climate action. Lines like “I don’t hold a hose mate” and “I am tonight announcing a snap lockdown” are up there too.

Yet, I can think of another prominent cause for our apathy, one often underplayed: Younger generations simply aren’t properly represented in politics.

There are more than three million Australians in their 20s, yet no one sitting in the House of Representatives is under 30. The average MP is aged 51, while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese turned 61 last month, and Peter Dutton will turn 54 later this year.

It seems Paul Keating, who once famously named the Senate “unrepresentative swill”, might have done well to include the lower house in the insult (he left office at 52, by the way).

The party that can address this drought stands to win a large tract of currently disengaged young voters. The keys to the castle of Australian politics are up for grabs.

Don’t believe me? Young MPs are more likely to advocate for issues important to young voters because they share their experiences and struggles – and in turn, these voters gladly reward them.

Two examples prove it. In Australia, Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather, and in New Zealand, Chloe Swarbrick.

At 32 years old, Chandler-Mather is one of the youngest MPs currently in parliament. He has quickly made a name for himself by advocating for issues that impact younger voters, namely the housing crisis.

As one of a handful federal MPs who does not own at least one property, Chandler-Mather is often seen asking the prime minister questions like, “Can you explain to the millions of Australian renters why property investors should get billions, but renters should cop unlimited rent increases every 12 months?” His advocacy for housing, including the ambitious new policy he recently announced, targets an issue that is especially close to young people given that almost three quarters of young Australians believe they will never be able to buy a home.

In New Zealand, 29-year-old Swarbrick is anxious that climate change doesn’t rapidly accelerate in the coming century. Consequently, she’s often advocating for sustainability, such as her successful appeal for the former government to reduce emissions from its Crown investments. Swarbrick is now co-leader of the Green Party and only the second Green MP to win an electorate seat. She enjoys an Instagram following greater than that of the prime minister, deputy prime minister, minister for finance, the attorney general, and minister for health combined.

In Australia, the Greens have consistently introduced a greater proportion of young members to federal politics in recent years than either of the major parties. Western Australia Senator Jordon Steele-John is 29, Member for Brisbane Stephen Bates is 31, and, as we know, Chandler-Mather is 32.

It’s no coincidence that during the 2022 federal election, we saw “the success of the Greens in four of the nation’s youngest electorates”, according to the Australian Election Study.

Other parties have put forward young politicians in the past, of course. For the Coalition, Wyatt Roy was elected at 20, and James Paterson at 28. The Greens’ Sarah Hanson-Young was 25 when first elected. From Labor, Kate Ellis was elected at 27.

Yet, these were anomalies and outliers. To win over young voters, a concerted long-term effort to introduce a meaningful proportion of young politicians is needed.

Sure, there are sound arguments against having more young MPs. A lack of experience is the most popular one. Yet to have been successfully elected, our current crop of young politicians have clearly made up for this deficiency in other ways, like through their work ethic, intellect, compassion and ability to resonate with a huge cohort of voters.

There are also a fair share of politicians – both current and former – who would challenge the notion that age equates to stellar performances or career excellence.

Look at candidates Lucy Bradlow and Bronwen Bock, who are running in the Victorian seat of Higgins and aim to be the first co-elected job-sharing MPs. Like Chandler-Mather and Swarbrick, they bring fresh ideas that can move politics forward – for them, a lifetime of experience is not a prerequisite for insight and intelligence.

By no means must the prime minister be a smoothie-sipping Snapchatter, nor the Attorney-General a WFH Zoomer. But great age representation wouldn’t hurt. It is the House of Representatives we’re talking about, after all.

Daniel Cash is a freelance writer and law student at the Australian National University.

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