Young people vote Liberal Democrats in Y Vote Mock Elections

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 16th May 2006

Sir Menzies Campbell & his Liberal Democrats win the vote amongst young people in Y Vote Mock Elections

The Liberal Democrats have won the 2006 Y Vote Mock Local Elections, gaining 30% of the votes of the young people who took part. The Labour party and The Green Party were tied in second place with a quarter of the votes each.

Young people voting at Polling Kiosk

The results, published today by the Hansard Society as part of their Y Vote Mock Elections project, supported by The Electoral Commission and the Department for Education and Skills, show a clear difference between the political attitudes of voters in the mock elections and their adult counterparts. The young voters revealed their support for the UK's third largest party, with the Liberal Democrats gaining nearly a third of school pupil's votes. Labour gained joint second with 25% of the vote, as did The Green Party. The Conservative's only gained 15% of the young people's votes.

The Full result was:

Lib Dem - 30%

Green Party - 25%

Labour - 25%

Conservative - 15%

UKIP - 5%

Approximately 100,000 pupils at more than 200 schools registered for the Y Vote Mock Elections which took place across the UK. The Mock Elections aim to boost young people's interest in politics by providing a unique opportunity to get involved in the excitement of a school election.

Students across the UK were involved in a range of election activities from standing as candidates, writing speeches and manifestos, and reporting for their school newspapers, to designing posters and building ballot boxes. As campaigns have drawn to a close in recent weeks, students have had a taste of voting in a live election.

Responding to the result, West Midlands Liberal Democrat Youth & Students (WMLDYS) spokesperson Adam Nazir Ahmed Teladia said "I am very pleased that the Liberal Democrats won the support of the young people. It goes to show that the Liberal Democrats are the first choice for young people and that they agree with us on issues such as votes for sixteen year olds, the environment, ID Cards and tuition fees."

"I was very impressed by the participation in the 2006 Y Vote Mock Local Elections is a great way for young people to get involved in politics and show older people that they are not politically apathetic"

For more information on the Y Vote Mock Elections project, contact Michael Raftery: citizenship@hansard.lse.ac.uk