Abstract
The aim of this study was to establish the root causes that prevent the youth in Bulawayo from participating in elections and to establish whether they indeed engage in other forms of political participation. This qualitative inquiry is based on 15 focus group discussions consisting of a total of 157 respondents drawn from five suburbs in Bulawayo. In the selection of respondents, particular attention was paid to factors such as age, gender, and employment status. Although the findings of this study cannot be generalised to explain the absence of youth political participation in Zimbabwe, it provides some important explanations on why respondents in Bulawayo did not vote in the 2018 elections despite a new president, or why they do not engage in other forms of political participation.
An analytical framework was developed from the scholarly literature on the factors that influence the political participation of youth. These were divided into three categories: micro-level factors (including age, gender, life cycle factors and political efficacy) meso-level factors (for example, political socialisation, peer pressure and trade union pressure) and lastly, macro-level factors (such as the political culture, the electoral system and party structures).
Respondents provided several reasons why most of them have not voted and were also disinclined to vote in the 2023 elections. Three reasons stand out. Firstly, their disillusionment with political leaders and the political situation. Politicians who are corrupt and self-serving do not care about them and their interests. Besides their loss of faith in politicians, the youth also have no confidence in the election process, which, according to them, is characterised by vote rigging and an incompetent ZEC. This situation has continued under the new president, Emmerson Mnangagwa. The state of the economy, which has created inequalities that include a very high youth unemployment rate have not improved either. The economic challenges faced by youth in Zimbabwe go beyond the ordinary life cycle challenges faced by youth worldwide that explain their voter apathy. In the case of Zimbabwe, protracted economic challenges prolong and worsen these life cycle issues. Youth in Zimbabwe have to resort to informal and menial jobs and illegal migration to neighbouring countries to make a living.