Lesson StarterYoung people are less likely to participate in the political

process.

Why do you think this is the case? What could political parties do to improve the situation?

Today we will…

Summarise the reasons why people should vote in elections.

Identify the reasons why some people do not vote.

Success Criteria• I can categorise, in order of

importance, the reasons why people should vote.

• I can describe the reasons why people decide not to vote.

The Right to Vote

The Right to Vote•We have a democratic right in the UK to vote at election time.•However in the UK it is not compulsory that we vote therefore people can choose whether they want to vote or not.•There are a variety of reasons why people argue that we should use our right to vote and there are a variety of reasons why people argue we should not vote.

Who is not allowed to Vote?

•Those under 18 on the day of the election•Visitors to Britain and non-citizens •Members of the Royal Family•Members of the House of Lords•People who have been declared bankrupt•People with severe mental health problems

Voter Turnout: the percentage of people who are registered to vote on election day and who actually turned out to vote.

1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2010 2011

UK

–G

en

Ele

71% 59% 61% 65.1%

Sco

ttish

58% 49% 51.8%

50.4%

Lo

cal

Go

v 60% 50% 51.8%

Eu

rop

ean

24% 30% 34%

TurnoutThink, Pair

Share:

Do you think the voter turnout is high? Would you expect it to be higher? What are the reasons for this?

Now share with your partner.

Thinking TaskFactors affecting turnout-what are they? In the UK this has been as high as 80% however recent election often fall between 60-65% - why?

•Lack of trust of politicians – a major factor – many believe they lie and deceive e.g. 2009 expenses scandal put a lot of UK citizens ‘off politics’ as they believed MP’s were stealing from the ‘public purse’ and claiming for things they shouldn’t.•Lack of interest in politics - ‘boring’ – many people in the UK are not interested in politics, pay little attention to the news and newspapers therefore show little attention at election time to what parties have to offer in their manifesto’s – people may therefore choose not to vote.•No impact on them – Many people feel that voting has limited impact on their immediate lives – ‘how will voting change my situation e.g. living in poverty?’•The type of election – Many voters decide not to vote in elections that they feel are less important – e.g. the General Election in the UK will always have a higher turnout than local council elections as people view these as less important (40% or less)

Why Should We Vote?

• Your group will be issued with resource sheet 1.

• Read it together as a group and discuss

• Work together to pick out important information and create individual factfiles on the reasons why people should use their right to vote.

• Include as much detail as possible.

Reasons to use your

Vote

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Question:

Some people choose not to vote in elections.Explain, in detail, why some people choose not to vote in elections. (6 Marks)

Key StructurePEE

Make your POINT. EXPLAIN your point.

Give an EXAMPLE to back up your point

(or ELABORATE further on your point)

PEE X2 (4 marks)PEE X3 (6 marks)PEE X4 (8 marks)

KeywordsLackLie

PublicBored

BroadcastsElected

VoteLeaflets

ExpensesPolitics

AgeParties are all the same

Was I successful? • I can categorise, in

order of importance, the reasons why people should vote.

• I can describe the reasons why people decide not to vote.