ABSTRACT
In Europe today, significantly less than one percent of Gen Z belongs to a political party; Germany is no exception. Although a third of this generation is interested in becoming politically active, their involvement takes place outside of party politics. By helping to reduce Generation Z’s contact anxiety with party politics, they might be able to attract a few more young people to join their ranks. Most of them feel alienated by the rigid structures and procedures of party events and miss the use of digital channels and fast and flexible voting. Despite their status as the two long-standing governing parties, the Christian Democratic Union and Social Democratic Party are having difficulty attracting the attention of young people, the majority of whom consider them bland and impersonal. Young people are an impatient audience, easily frustrated by the complexities of political decision-making. If political parties want Generation Z to take an active part, they must first get through to them.
