Age Divide in UK Elections

Analysis by the Resolution Foundation of the British Election Study (BES) , taken after every general election since 1964, shows that the generational turnout gap that began in the mid-1990s has continued to widen. The foundation measures turnout based on those who voted as a proportion of the voting age population - rather than those on the electoral register. In 1964 there was only a three percentage points difference in turnout between 66-to 80-year-olds and those aged 21-to-35. That gap widened to 26% in 2005 and 25% in 2015.

The 2015 BES suggests 10.6 million voters aged 50-69 voted - about two-thirds of Britons that age but only 6.4 million - 46% - of Britons aged 18-24 voted.

Turnout as a proportion of voting age population
Year	21-35 year olds	66-80 year olds
1964	71%	74%
2005	44%	70%
2015	47%	72%

There is ongoing concern about apathy among younger voters, with organisations such as Bite the Ballot trying to get more young people on the electoral register. But part of the reason for the gap is that there are more older voters. In 1992, 74% of voters aged 21 to 35 surveyed said they cared "a great deal" which party won, but in 2015 only 56% did. Over the same period, the figure rose from 78% to 81% for voters aged 66 to 80.

The generational divide in turnout matters for democracy but also has profound implications for policy if politicians feel they only need to target the votes of older generations to win power. [My note: witness its effect on the UK-EU referendum result.]

BBC News website: Baby boomers 'dwarfed younger voters in 2015'; 23 Sep. 2016