I Can See Clearly Now - Ideological Clarity as a Driver of Young Voters' Political Participation
P8-S202-1
Presented by: Iva Srbinovska
Political participation is a cornerstone of democratic systems, yet it has declined significantly over the past four decades, particularly among young voters. While existing research has extensively examined the factors shaping youth participation, many of these influences are structural and resistant to change. This study investigates how the complexity of political decisions affects voter engagement, leveraging exogenous variation across over 20 Swiss ballot votes. Using official registry data from the canton of St. Gallen, we find that first-time voters exposed to ballot issues with greater political clarity demonstrate higher rates of subsequent participation. Furthermore, the magnitude of this effect systematically varies based on the level of political engagement in young voters' households. These findings underscore the potential to enhance youth participation by mitigating decision-making challenges in political processes.
Keywords: political participation, turnout, political socialization, voting behavior, first-time voters