The upcoming 16th Johor polls will be unlike the other state elections held in the past two years. It is the first to have 18-year-olds as voters, following the successful implementation of Undi18 and automatic voter registration at the start of this year. Such a change in voter demographic sets down a fresh battleground for political parties. While they figure out how to capture the youth vote, it is worth asking: do we youths know how much we can control the game just by casting ballots?
Recap on Undi18
Despite being unanimously passed by Parliament in 2019, the bill took almost 3 years to be officially implemented. Getting the government to lower the voting age from 21 to 18 was no straightforward task either.
The Youth Vote: A Double-Edged Sword
The sudden influx of younger voters may lead to both negative and positive effects. An outcome some people expect to see is final election results being swung. Kini News Lab’s analysis on the results of 7,745 polling districts nationwide during the 14th General Elections found that Pakatan Harapan would have had a landslide victory if only choices of younger voters were considered. Meanwhile, PAS would have easily clinched seats in Terengganu and Kelantan while making significant gains in Pahang.
Kini News Lab's astonishing research and analysis shows the power of young voters during the 14th General Elections.
Nevertheless, the analysis doesn’t mean to say that these same outcomes will reoccur in the Johor polls and/or the next General Elections (GE15). Youth sentiments towards each political party may have shifted after experiencing political upheaval between early 2020 to mid-2021. Their main issues and needs could also have changed after facing the economic and social repercussions resulting from multiple Covid-19 lockdowns. On top of that, these new voters will be those born between 1997 to 2004. A majority will still be studying (college and university level) while some may either have already or just joined the workforce. Besides from sitting through History classes, they might only get to gain political knowledge from social media.
Are We Really That “Politically Woke”?
I was 17 when GE14 happened, when the public decided they had enough, when the kleptocratic government was brought down overnight and when suddenly my father realised change stood a chance in Malaysia. Back then, I used to think politics was like the Battle of Armageddon — a big fight between the saint and the sinner. As long as I kept tabs on the good guy or bad guy, then I considered myself politically woke. However, doing that much was too superficial and immature. So if this is the thought process for people my age or younger when entering the voting booth, it is dangerous because great power comes with great responsibility.
So what does it mean to be politically aware then? There is no one-for-all definition, but Herman Dooyeweerd gives us a decent round-up in the 1986 book Political Philosophy on the matter:
“the ability to read into politicians’ agendas by listening to how they are going to make the difference in running government policies. Also, knowing what has been not so good for the country and our Constitutional beliefs according to current laws and how they have been handled in the past.”
Of course, staying informed on the ‘currents’ in public policy and governance is important. Though the biggest indicator of political woke-ness is when you are able to critically weigh the agendas driving politicians irregardless if they are from the government or opposition bloc. At the very core of it, you need to find out whether or not any of the decisions made or actions taken reflect the Rakyat’s sentiments, needs and wants. Modern and urban conditions might have shaped our sense of liberalism, but we youths must keep ourselves in check by asking: can we see through and condemn morally or constitutionally unacceptable actions?
A Steep Learning Curve Awaits
We cannot blame youths for their lack of political awareness today. The range of information about politics had been further limited and inaccessible before social media emerged. For a long time, the government embodied an outrageous desire for “absolute control” over information. Journalists who wrote unfavourable articles about the government were often met with punishment through the Sedition Act 1948. As a result, many of them have censored themselves. It also didn’t help that the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971 (UCCA) remained tightly enforced until late 2018, preventing generations of higher tertiary students from participating on-campus political activities.
With the Johor polls around the corner, the youth-centric Muda has further upped their online and/or posting activities on social media.
Although social media today allows a free-flow of political information and discussion, it presents us with various problems, such as biassed narratives, misinformation and disinformation. With how easily public opinion may be influenced, that makes social media a threat. It becomes increasingly dangerous if people believe and share them since the last four years continue to see social media as a predominant source of news for Malaysians. In other words, today’s circumstances actually make the learning curve for youths much more complex.
So What Then?
Younger people voting in elections will not just be cumbersome at a state level, but also nationwide for the next few years to come. After all, learning this battle between evil and lesser evil is non-linear. It is not a step by step, one-size-fits-all process. There cannot be a deadline on when one should be completely knowledgeable. So for the Johor polls, nothing much can be done besides monitoring the youths and helping them to prepare for one challenge after another.
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