At the end of last week the actions of a 16 year old politics student from the Isle of Wight led to the incumbent Isle of Wight MP of 16 years having to stand down.
Andrew Turner had told sixth form students at Christ The King College that he believed being gay was “wrong” and dangerous to “society”. There was national outcry and the MP stood down within just a few hours of OnTheWight breaking the story.
Make your voice heard
What it showed is that young people can have an impact on local politics. This week many are urging young people who have registered to vote to make sure they head to the polling station on Thursday for the 2017 Isle of Wight council elections.
If you haven’t registered to vote it’s too late for this week, but you have until 22nd May to register to vote in the 2017 general election – you can do it here.
Shayne: “Use your vote and use your power”
Inspired by the Isle of Wight student, 17 year old Shayne Jackson, has created this video which they hope will remind young voters of what they can achieve.
How it works
If you haven’t voted before full details of how to do it and where can be found on the Electoral Commission ‘Your Vote Counts’ Website.
Polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm on Thursday.
Details of all candidates and your nearest polling station can be found on our dedicated election Website: Election OnTheWight
Need a more diverse and representative Council
Julia Baker Smith, the Leader of the Island Independent Group said:
“I hope that we will see a much increased vote from those aged under 25 in the current local elections. There are so many issues that affect those in this age range, including further and higher education, apprenticeships and affordable housing, that we need to be sure those representing the community are taking the views of those closely affected by these issues into their decision making.
“We need to see a more diverse and representative Council after the current elections.
“The young vote is key to achieving that. If they can force our MP to resign they can certainly guide how our local authority acts in the coming years.”
Image: theresasthompson under CC BY 2.0
