Britain’s Conservative Party experienced a disastrous performance at July’s general election, with polls indicating a near-total abandonment by Gen Z voters.
After 14 years in power, the Tories were unanimously voted out by the British electorate following a snap election on July 4.
Despite the date of the election, it certainly wasn’t a celebratory day for Tory candidates and voters.
A crucial demographic to explore in-depth following this election is that of Gen Z voters.
After all, young people’s collective deviance from established voting norms can result in a reshaping of the UK’s political sphere.
A Political Gamble Gone Wrong
When then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced a snap election in late-May, rain-soaked and drowned out by definitive New Labour track “Things Can Only Get Better”, it seemed almost certain that the Tories would be dramatically booted out.
After all, polls had indicated for months upon months that Keir Starmer’s Labour Party was consistently widening the gap in points between themselves and the Tories; with the likely result being a historic Labour landslide.
So why did Sunak unexpectedly go ahead with a July election – especially when it was widely presumed that autumn was the placeholder?
It was merely his acceptance that there would never be a ‘right time’ to hold a general election that encouraged Sunak to take the plunge.
Contentious issues and proposals coming into the election – such as the Rwanda plan, defence spending and tax cuts – did little to boost the Tories’ tainted image and polling figures.
Thus, ripping the plaster off sooner rather than later was a risk worth taking for Sunak.
Evidently, however, this divisive gamble did not pay off. The Tories lost 251 seats following the election, leaving them with an all-time low of 121 MPs.
Labour, on the other hand, dominated the British political sphere – with smaller parties also gaining crucial support from the electorate.
A significant reason for this political shift was the often-underestimated Gen Z vote.
How Gen Z Deviated From Conservative Politics
Back in 1997, young voters expressed their dissatisfaction with almost two decades of Tory rule under Margaret Thatcher and John Major by decisively voting for Labour, led by fresh-faced Tony Blair.
Fast-forward 27 years, and today’s younger voters similarly signalled a need for their voices to be heard after being forced into 14 years of steadily right-wing Tory rule, as well as a departure from the European Union.
Conducted by YouGov shortly after July’s general election, the above bar chart illustrates the stark generation shift of voting decisions between younger and older Brits.
Evidently, young people across the UK are significantly more inclined to vote for Labour; while older people remain committed to the Tories.
This may not be a recent trend, but the 2024 general election presents an especially notable divide between age groups – in addition to a less rigid style of voting among the Gen Z electorate.
Interestingly, young people in the UK have made their stance clear in choosing not to align to any single party.
Rather, the 2024 vote indicates an absolute rejection of the Tories, in addition to a more pronounced dedication to left-wing, socially liberal smaller parties.
For such a historically strong party vote-wise in Britain, the fact that the Tories won over a mere 7% of voters under the age of 30 really strengthens the argument that the party is heading towards electoral extinction.
With over-65s being the only age group that supported the Tories more than they did Labour, this generational divide in voting habits is further clarified.
Gen Z Decides: A Conservative-less Future For Britain?
An equally notable trend of the 2024 general election was the historically low vote share for the nation’s two main parties – Labour and the Conservatives; in addition to the atypically high vote share for Britain’s smaller parties.
While this trend of voters distancing themselves from the two-party system spans many years, the fact that the combined Labour and Tory vote share amounted to a mere 57% was unprecedented.
Even more fascinating is the fact that it’s primarily younger voters that are rejecting the two main parties; less than half of under-30s voted for the major parties, compared to 60% of over-65s.
Consequently, the combined vote share for smaller parties among Gen Z was more significant, at 46%, than the 42% of under-30s who voted for Labour.
As both the Tories and Labour can no longer rely on the ‘youth vote’ as a guaranteed means of electoral success, what does this mean for the prospects of smaller parties?
It’s a particularly difficult question to answer, as the UK still votes based on the first-past-the-post voting system – despite figures from across the political spectrum explicitly stating the necessity for proportional representation going forward.
Labour and the Tories remain advantageous merely because of this frankly outdated voting system, but perhaps in future years Starmer’s government will be forced to consider allowing a fairer system.
In doing so, smaller parties would be given an equal and deserved power share in Parliament.
Young Voters Boosting Smaller Parties
The parties that would most likely benefit from such an overhaul to the UK’s voting system would be the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party – with each receiving 15% of support from youngsters in the post-election survey.
The Liberal Democrats, under Ed Davey’s, performed wonders at the election. Davey’s party gained 64 seats, leading to the Liberal Democrats becoming the third-largest party once again.
Could Davey’s antics throughout the campaign – from juggling and hula hooping, to riding a rollercoaster and shooting down a waterslide – have contributed to their success among young voters? Perhaps.
But it wasn’t merely a case of: “Let’s vote for the party with the most meme-worthy leader.”
It was Davey’s eagerness to engage with young voters policy-wise, and his promise to restore the trust of the Gen Z electorate after the disasters of 2010-15, that truly resonated with them.
After all, a mere 6% of under-30s surveyed stated that they voted for Reform UK – compared with 17% of over-50s. Evidently, Gen Z voters consider their votes with much thought.
Gen Z: The ‘Now’ Of British Politics
As mentioned at the beginning of this article, Gen Z voters are often underestimated when it comes to general election campaigns. But this generation isn’t merely ‘the future’ any longer.
With youngsters such as 25-year-old Keir Mather and 22-year-old Sam Carling being elected as MPs, it is undeniable that Gen Z has began to shift into the role of power-maker.
Only time will tell whether Starmer will be another Tory-lite leader, further distancing young voters from the party, or whether deputy prime minister Angela Rayner can help to implement key progressive, socialist policies .
If it’s the former, then the next decade could result in a similar decline for Labour, as well as the rise of a realigned voting system; with smaller parties holding greater, more proportional representation in Parliament.
