ABSTRACT
Young people between the ages 18 to 35 years, often referred to Millennials and Generation Z, make up a significant proportion of the voting population in several developing countries and their voting power is likely to grow. However, they continue to have the lowest voting rate across the generations. Research has indicated that young people tend to be lax voters in national or local elections. There are many reasons cited that contribute to low voter participation among young people. Among these include the failure of political campaigns to strategically engage and excite young voters; the perceived unfairness and inequity in governance processes and systems; and a general lack of motivation among young people to engage in electoral processes. Although there are no magic solutions that might exponentially increase youth participation in voting processes, enhanced civic education for young people has been touted as one recommendation to address this vexing issue. Research has, however, indicated that an understanding of how the socio-political, socio-economic and socio-cultural environments impact young people is critical when developing civic awareness strategies to increase young people’s participation in electoral processes. Another critical factor is whether or not these strategies are youth-led. One such noteworthy strategy, which was evident in Guyana’s 2015 electoral cycle, was the “Vote like a Boss” campaign launched by the Guyana National Youth Council. This youth-led initiative sought to increase voter awareness, enhance the quality of political discourse and encourage the active participation of young Guyanese in the electoral process.
In this chapter, we use a critical lens to examine the “Vote like a Boss” initiative from the perspectives of Caribbean youth leaders and determine its implications for the Caribbean political landscape.
