The general election is next week and young people have been sharing their thoughts and top concerns with the Irish News ahead of going to to the polls.
Nicole Beck (22) from Lisburn is a recent politics graduate preparing to vote on July 4.
While issues like mental health, housing and the cost of living are important to Nicole, ensuring that political institutions deliver is her key concern.
@the_irish_news Young people in Northern Ireland tell the Irish News what matters to them when it comes to voting in the July 4 General Election #generalelection #theirishnews #northernireland #belfast #fyp ♬ original sound - The Irish News
Having cast her first ballot in the 2022 Assembly election, Nicole said that she would like to see “durable and sustainable institutions” in the north.
“I think it’s more about the delivery of things, not just as a constituency but as a whole political structure,” she said.
“That’s the issue I have found with voting, I’m always going to vote but I find it’s hard to change things in the system, because you don’t know when the next collapse is going to happen.
“So that’s the key thing for me, how to fix the political structures.”
Originally from Dublin Gráinne McCall (28) said she was looking forward to voting at the upcoming general election.
“I just think that nothing gets better if you don’t vote,” she said.
“Sometimes you feel like you can’t do much, but voting is something that you can do.”
Having relocated to Belfast two years ago amid soaring costs in the Republic, the cost of living is a key priority for her.
Gráinne hopes her vote will help curb rising costs in Northern Ireland.
“I’ve lived in three places since I moved here, and each time it’s getting more expensive but the quality isn’t getting better,” she added.
“Price of living is going up everywhere, I moved up here because of the price of living where I’m from and now I’m seeing it get worse here.”
A lot of candidates don’t look at issues that are affecting younger people and aren’t looking to the future, they are stuck in the here and now.
— Anna Graham
Anna Graham (22) an Ulster University computing student also said that housing and finances were key issues she would like to see addressed.
But she worries that candidates aren’t looking to younger people when setting their priorities.
“A lot of candidates don’t look at issues that are affecting younger people and aren’t looking to the future, they are stuck in the here and now,” she said.
“And some of those issues are big, and realistically they need to be looking to the future and need to be caring for younger people.”
Kamal (17) is too young to vote and said he feels disillusioned with politics.
He feels that elections do not seem to make a difference, with politicians often failing to “come through” with their election promises.
He added that while he feels there is a “decent amount of push for young people voting”, he doesn’t see enough young people in politics.
Recent graduate, Christian (25) said that when it comes to casting his vote he will be quizzing candidates for their stand on key issues.
“When it comes down to the vote, the most important thing isn’t necessarily the party, it’s the politician and what they stand for,” he said.
“I wouldn’t say that I keep very zealously informed when it comes to politics, but I’m a Christian so when someone comes to my door and says ‘can I count on your vote, I come from this party’, I don’t really mind what party you come from.
“But I will ask you what your stance on human rights, on equality, on abortion on all these different things you hear about all that time.”
People need hope at the minute, and politicians need to be offering that.
— Christian
But he added that the “country is not in a good state” and that politicians need to “have a firm stance” and deliver change for the north.
“There does need to be change and that’s what people want, that’s what young people want, especially,” he said.
He added: “People need hope at the minute, and politicians need to be offering that.
“It’s not just a case of put me back in because I want to stay in or get my party in because we haven’t had our shot yet and we’re going to do this for you.
“They need to start bringing these things to fruition because a lot of people aren’t voting.”
