Electoral Commission
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Elections watchdog teams up with NUS and other youth organisations to say to students #RegAFriend

The Electoral Commission and the National Union of Students are launching a new viral campaign alongside a number of other organisations in a bid to get more students and young people registered to vote ahead of the General Election in May.

Called #RegAFriend (‘Register a Friend’), the campaign will urge students and young people who have already registered to vote to encourage their non-registered friends and family to now do the same, by sharing messages and photos on social media.

The initiative – which will launch on 19 March – is also being supported by a range of other organisations including Association of Colleges (AoC),  British Youth Council, London Youth, The Scout Association, Girlguiding, YMCA and the National Association of College & University Entrepreneurs (NACUE).

Michael AbbottHead of Campaigns at the Electoral Commission, said: “Too many young people are still not registered to vote to have their say on 7 May. Over half also don’t know they can register to vote online. But plenty of young people are passionate about voting and this campaign aims to use the power of social networks to help them spread the word about the importance and ease of registering. Time is running short and if students and young people want to have their say they must take action now by registering atwww.gov.uk/register-to-vote.”

Toni Pearce, NUS President, said: “I’m incredibly excited about this new initiative and I can’t wait to see students getting involved with the campaign and getting more young people registered to vote. With the general election fast approaching, NUS and students’ unions are doing loads of great work across the country to raise awareness of the new voter registration system, and we would encourage anyone who is unsure to go to the new online voter registration site and check if they are registered.

“Students look set to play a key role in determining the result of the general election, and politicians are right to recognise their importance. Students are calling for a new deal and for politicians to outline a positive vision for the future, and it is incredibly important that they are encouraged to take part in democracy, not kept out from it.”

Martin Doel, Chief Executive of Association of Colleges, said: “We’re using this campaign to encourage college students to register to vote so that they can have their say on 7 May. Young people have a significant electoral influence and with the next Government making crucial decisions that will affect their future it’s important they have a voice.”

Hannah Kentish, UK Youth Commissioner for The Scout Association, said: “We know that there are so many people who have not yet registered to vote so they can take part in the elections in May. We have close to 10,000 young adults who are our members who will be first time voters. We don’t want any of them to not get their voice heard, so we’ll be encouraging the young adults we work with to get behind the campaign, register themselves and ask their friends to do the same.”

Mita Desai, Chair of the British Youth Council, said: “The British Youth Council believes that the Youth Vote will matter in this election if enough register and turn out, so we are delighted to be supporting the Electoral Commission's Register A Friend initiative. We have lots of friends and we ll be encouraging them all to register.  Our new polling with YouGov shows that 71% of 18-24 year olds said they were definitely registered at the end of February, and as many as 14% more think they are. So to those who are already registered  we appeal - get your friends to register as well.”

The campaign begins with a person encouraging their friend to register to vote. Then, once that friend has registered, they can also take a photo of themselves making a ‘voter cross’ before sharing that photo on Facebook or Twitter, along with a message saying they’ve encouraged a friend to register and their friends or followers should do the same.

The message will include the hashtag #RegAFriend and a link to www.gov.uk/register-to-vote, where people can register to vote online.
Young people, including students, are less likely to be registered to vote than those in other age-groups. Electoral Commission research indicates that around 30% of 18-24 year olds are not registered to vote compared to less than 5% of those aged over 65.

The Electoral Commission also launched a separate Facebook advertising campaign in February encouraging 18 year olds to “use your age wisely” and seize the opportunity to take part in their first General Election.

A recent analysis of the 1 December 2014 electoral registers by the Commission found that there had been a 33% fall in the number of ‘attainers’ (16 and 17 year olds) on the registers compared with figures published in February / March that year.

The Electoral Commission is also using mobile advertising for the first time to directly encourage students to register to vote online. Tens of thousands of students with mobile phones on the EE, O2 and Vodafone networks will receive SMS/MMS messages that include a link to www.gov.uk/register-to-vote

The toolkit, which contains further details of the campaign, can be found here.

Interviews

Interviews are available. Please contact Rosemary Davenport on 0207 271 0704 orrdavenport@electoralcommission.org.uk to arrange these.

Notes to editors

  1. A recent YouGov survey for the Electoral Commission found that over half of 18 – 24 year olds surveyed (53%) were not aware that they could now register to vote online.
  2. An ‘attainer’ is a 16 or 17 year old who will reach voting age (18 years old) during the life of the current Electoral Register.
  3. The Electoral Commission is an independent body set up by the UK Parliament. Our aim is integrity and public confidence in the UK’s democratic process. We regulate party and election finance and set standards for well-run elections and are responsible for the conduct and regulation of referendums held under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act (2000). The Commission is working with a range of partners to help promote voter registration, more details on which can be found on its website here.
  4. National Union of Students (NUS)  champions students to shape the future of education – and create a better world. We promote, defend and extend student rights. We fight discrimination, isolation and injustice. Through practical information and national action, we make sure students can thrive. We support and strengthen students and their unions. We are informed – developing research that influences national policy. We are active – taking on all the issues that affect students’ lives now and in future. We know students. We are students. We are 7 million student voices.
  5. Association of Colleges (AoC) is a not-for-profit membership organisation set up in 1996 by colleges to act as their collective voice. AoC’s membership includes 336 colleges in England, including general further education, sixth form, tertiary and land-based colleges. It supports, represents and protects the interests of its member colleges, as well as the rest of the FE sector.
  6. Universities UK (UUK) is the representative organisation for the UK’s universities. Founded in 1918, its mission is to be the definitive voice for all universities in the UK, providing high quality leadership and support to its members to promote a successful and diverse higher education sector. With 133 members and offices in London, Cardiff and Edinburgh, it promotes the strength and success of UK universities nationally and internationally. www.universitiesuk.ac.uk
  7. The Scout Association was founded on 1st August 1907. Adventure is at the core of Scouting, and the Association passionately believes in helping their members fulfil their full physical, intellectual social and spiritual potentials by working in teams, learning by doing and thinking for themselves. Over 200 activities are offered by Scouting around the UK, made possible by the efforts of more than 100,000 volunteer leaders. This has helped make Scouting the largest co-educational youth Movement in the country.
  8. The British Youth Council is the National Youth Council of the UK. A youth-led charity, we empower young people aged 25 and under to influence and inform the decisions that affect their lives. We support young people to get involved in their communities and democracy locally, nationally and internationally, making a difference as volunteers, campaigners, decision-makers and leaders.
  9. The opinion poll figures in the British Youth Council’s quote, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1,175 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 20th - 26th February 2015.  The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 16-24).

 

Channel website: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk

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