Youth electoral abstention in Spain: causes and proposals to reverse it

Spanish youth vote at significantly lower rates than other population groups, a trend that undermines the representativeness and equity of the country’s political system. This study focuses on two general objectives concerning young electoral abstainers in Spain: analyzing the causes of their electoral abstention and exploring their proposals to reverse it. The methodological approach follows a mixed design with an exploratory scope. Data collection is based on questionnaires completed by N = 420 young systematic electoral abstainers in Spain, while data analysis primarily relies on topic modeling. The results reveal that 65.25per cent of respondents abstain from voting due to passive causes, mainly a lack of interest in politics and the perception that politics does not affect their daily lives. Among the remaining 34.75per cent who abstain for conscious causes, the most common one is ideological disagreement with the parties and the feeling that none of them represent their interests or values. In terms of proposals, the findings highlight the need for cooperation between governments entities, educational institutions, the media, and civil society organizations to address the high rates of youth electoral abstention. Furthermore, they suggest the urgency of a paradigm shift in the conception of political participation.