View from Gen Z: young politicians quitting politics due to polarisation

Covid forced people to confront politics directly, the parties, the lies and the malpractice presented a challenge which some could not shy away from. Cllr Ben Williams was no different to me. Ben is a 21-year-old student from the University of Glasgow, and in 2022 became the youngest elected representative on Moray Council, in north-east Scotland.

“I’d always had a vague interest in politics” he tells me. “It was probably during Covid; during the lockdowns that I cemented the views that I hold. I spent a lot of time thinking about it. Eventually I came to the view that just thinking about things wasn't going to make a difference in any meaningful way, or certainly not in the way that I wanted to.” 

Therefore, when the chance rolled around for Ben to run as a Labour councillor, he took the opportunity without much thought. “I was 19 and there wasn't a lot of pre planning,” he says. “I didn't think to myself: ‘Oh, I'm young, and I want to be a councillor.’ It was the case that the opportunity opened up. I thought that because of my age and my own experiences, you know, maybe I was in a position to offer a new perspective.” 

“Your age was a big factor then?” I asked. “Yeah ... and that is something I heard when I was out campaigning, even from people who weren't my age, who thought, you know what, it would be good to get a new perspective.” 

If any good can be taken from the Covid pandemic, then it is that it inspired people like Ben to get into politics. Ben is a very passionate, thoughtful and an eloquent speaker, who would have undoubtedly been a brilliant vehicle for change. But sadly, Ben’s optimism has dissipated.

Ben explains: “I’ve taken the view that [politics] is not a career, nor would I want it to be. I'm in this position where I can affect some change, and I want to do that for as long as I hold the position. But past then, I’ve not given much thought.” 

I instantly liked Ben, so, with a pronounced tone of disappointment I asked why? Ben replies: “The political environment is a place where I wouldn’t want to spend my whole life. Things are too polarised.” 

Ben continues: “For many people, there is a view that politics is not working for them. Now that has two effects. I think the first one is it can energize some people, and it can make them really want to get their voice heard. The alternative is it just causes people to become detached from the political process and think: ‘What's the point? Nothing's going to change.’” 

Ben thinks social media has made Gen Z less party-political. “I do think perhaps social media has played a part where we we've grown up with so much access to so much information all the time that I do think it's probably become easier to find issues that we care greatly about, and so when the party that we support doesn't entirely align with our views on those issues. I think Gen Z will typically place more value upon their views on issues than party loyalty”. 

Instead of tribal politics “Gen Z is less party political than previous generations”, he says. “It's not to say they don't get involved in their party, but I do think they're more willing to criticize their parties.” Consequently, there are vast disagreements on individual issues. In other words, there is a lack of kinship over overall beliefs because each individual issue becomes the battleground. Behind the anonymity of social media, there is little understandings to be found. 

What’s fascinating is the similarity of opinion amongst Gen Z politicians across the political spectrum. I recently spoke with 21-year-old Conservative Isaac Howarth, who is stood in the general election. His opinions on polarisation mirrored Ben’s. Isaac mentioned social media presenting a “kind of aggressive politics”. A place where “impartiality and objectivity are not tolerated” since “you can’t sit down and talk to someone”. The only difference is Isaac has not turned away from politics yet. 

Over the last decade “people are just drained from so much politics”, says Ben. How can anyone disagree? Politics has become a pantomime over the last decade. For the sake of the country and Gen Z, we need to make politics responsible again to stop the exodus of individuals like Ben.

But how do we keep people in politics I pondered to Ben. We “have to show the politics can work for Gen Z”, he tells me. “I know there's a general view that politicians can't be trusted, but certainly for our generation, one of our first political memories was of Brexit and all the misinformation that went along during that campaign.

“I think the sense in Gen Z that politicians don't keep their promises is a lot stronger than in previous generations. Therefore, one way in which I think politicians can restore some faith in the political process is just not by promising things you can't do”. 

So, if we’re losing characters like Ben, it worries me the ones we’re left with. It is sad that the people who wanted to fight against the problematic politics that was seen during the pandemic have become themselves exhausted by the system. Gen Z cannot fall into the same trap of those who came before, we have to be better.