Kenny Imafidon: Engaging young people in UK politics
Kenny Imafidon: Engaging young people in UK politics
Author
When the UK government announced it was lowering the voting age to 16, one campaigner applauding the decision was Dr Kenny Imafidon MBE.
Prior to co-founding ClearView Research – a B-Corp whose aim is to give minority and under-represented groups a voice and provide organisations the opportunity to hear them – Kenny had been involved in early research around allowing 16 and 17-year-olds to vote.
He has always been passionate about engaging people in politics, particularly young people.
“I recognised from early on that if you don’t do politics, politics will do you. The people most affected by policies are the least likely to engage in politics. Political representation is far from diverse, people don’t see themselves, they don’t feel represented, and therefore they don’t engage. Or they do engage, but not through formal channels.”
It was his 2016 Churchill Fellowship which gave Kenny the opportunity to explore how other countries draw young people into politics.
“My background is in research, so I do a lot of work in terms of helping people to understand communities which are under-represented or under-researched. The Churchill Fellowship enabled me to look deeper and differently into political engagement and how we can increase democratic participation. It was a real game-changer, because it gave me a perspective beyond just the UK.”
Exploring youth and politics overseas
Kenny’s Fellowship travels took him to the USA – visiting Washington DC (including securing meetings at the White House), Chicago, and New York – and to Hong Kong.
Kenny was impressed with America’s ‘Motor Voter Act’, which encourages citizens to register to vote when they are issued a driver’s licence. He found that in New York City Council, members of the community could directly decide how to spend $1million of the public budget.
In Hong Kong, Kenny was invited to speak at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, meeting Prof Chan Kin-man, one of the co-founders of the pro-democracy Umbrella Movement. He was also able to meet and interview significant figures associated to the movement and in the wider political space.
“I found the USA, for all its fair share of problems with its democracy, was in some ways much more advanced. Being out there showed me how much further we could go in terms of engaging young people and other stakeholders in society, as well as changing legislation to remove barriers to engagement. It’s not just about getting people to vote and register though; it’s also about how to engage people more broadly.”
"The Fellowship enabled me to look deeper and differently into political engagement and how we can increase democratic participation. It was a real game-changer, because it gave me a perspective beyond the UK."
Promoting voter registration and engagement
Kenny was already known for promoting democratic participation, and through Bite The Ballot, he partnered with social media platforms, using their audiences to increase voter participation.
Since his Fellowship, he continues to champion political engagement among young people and encourage voter registration.
Kenny is currently working on a participatory budgeting pilot, along the lines of the New York City Council model, giving residents of Peckham and Brixton the right to influence budget at a local level. However, this money comes directly from trusts and foundations, as opposed to local councils.
He believes his Fellowship has given him confidence to continue his work.
“On a personal level, it was a memorable experience, being able to focus on a topic I care about, taking those lessons back to the UK, sharing and disseminating them – that was priceless. How often does anyone get the chance to do that? It was a very enriching, rare experience.”
Prior to co-founding ClearView Research – a B-Corp whose aim is to give minority and under-represented groups a voice and provide organisations the opportunity to hear them – Kenny had been involved in early research around allowing 16 and 17-year-olds to vote.
He has always been passionate about engaging people in politics, particularly young people.
“I recognised from early on that if you don’t do politics, politics will do you. The people most affected by policies are the least likely to engage in politics. Political representation is far from diverse, people don’t see themselves, they don’t feel represented, and therefore they don’t engage. Or they do engage, but not through formal channels.”
It was his 2016 Churchill Fellowship which gave Kenny the opportunity to explore how other countries draw young people into politics.
“My background is in research, so I do a lot of work in terms of helping people to understand communities which are under-represented or under-researched. The Churchill Fellowship enabled me to look deeper and differently into political engagement and how we can increase democratic participation. It was a real game-changer, because it gave me a perspective beyond just the UK.”
Exploring youth and politics overseas
Kenny’s Fellowship travels took him to the USA – visiting Washington DC (including securing meetings at the White House), Chicago, and New York – and to Hong Kong.
Kenny was impressed with America’s ‘Motor Voter Act’, which encourages citizens to register to vote when they are issued a driver’s licence. He found that in New York City Council, members of the community could directly decide how to spend $1million of the public budget.
In Hong Kong, Kenny was invited to speak at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, meeting Prof Chan Kin-man, one of the co-founders of the pro-democracy Umbrella Movement. He was also able to meet and interview significant figures associated to the movement and in the wider political space.
“I found the USA, for all its fair share of problems with its democracy, was in some ways much more advanced. Being out there showed me how much further we could go in terms of engaging young people and other stakeholders in society, as well as changing legislation to remove barriers to engagement. It’s not just about getting people to vote and register though; it’s also about how to engage people more broadly.”
"The Fellowship enabled me to look deeper and differently into political engagement and how we can increase democratic participation. It was a real game-changer, because it gave me a perspective beyond the UK."
Promoting voter registration and engagement
Kenny was already known for promoting democratic participation, and through Bite The Ballot, he partnered with social media platforms, using their audiences to increase voter participation.
Since his Fellowship, he continues to champion political engagement among young people and encourage voter registration.
Kenny is currently working on a participatory budgeting pilot, along the lines of the New York City Council model, giving residents of Peckham and Brixton the right to influence budget at a local level. However, this money comes directly from trusts and foundations, as opposed to local councils.
He believes his Fellowship has given him confidence to continue his work.
“On a personal level, it was a memorable experience, being able to focus on a topic I care about, taking those lessons back to the UK, sharing and disseminating them – that was priceless. How often does anyone get the chance to do that? It was a very enriching, rare experience.”