Is giving rewards for voting a good idea?

46553

Total votes

12805

5-11 votes

33748

11-16+ votes

With as much as 49% of the world’s population taking to the polls this year, we wanted to ask young people about incentivised voting: would rewarding people for exercising their democratic right help tackle dwindling voter turnout, or is gamifying elections a step too far?

Primary 7-11, Secondary, 16+ & College voters were asked: “Is giving rewards for voting a good idea?”, while Primary 5-7 voters considered: “Do rewards encourage you?”

46,553 young people in the UK have taken part in this vote.

Age 5-11 voter

Some people can't vote which means they won't be able to get rewards when others do.

Age 11-16 voter

We believe that rewards are a very good idea as lots of people are reluctant to vote, this will make people happier so it is a fabulous idea.

Age 16+ voter

There are a lot of ways to get more people to vote, and we especially like the idea of online voting to make it easier and more accessible. But, overall, we don't think rewards are a good idea.

Thank you to Sarah, Senior Communications Officer at the Electoral Commission and Tom Brake, Director of Unlock Democracy for responding to young people's voices on this topic!

Watch the videos below to hear what they had to say.

57% of 7-11-year-olds said that it is not a good idea to give rewards for voting.

Primary pupils aged 5-7 were asked, "Do rewards encourage you?" There was a large 'Yes' majority, with 80% voting 'Yes'.
Meanwhile, Primary pupils aged 7-11 were discussing, "Is giving rewards for voting a good idea?"
Just over half, at 57% voted 'No'.

54% of Secondary students disagreed, voting that 'Yes', incentivised voting is a good idea for improving voter turnout.

Secondary, 16+ & College voters all considered the question, "Is giving rewards for voting a good idea?"
Just over half of Secondary students voted 'Yes', at 54%.
Interestingly, 60% of 16+ & College students voted 'No', with a result similar to that found in the Primary 7-11 vote.

Some voters claimed it would help with motivation whereas others worried that it would lead to many voting without proper consideration.

A common argument from 'Yes' voters was that rewards could motivate those who struggle with motivation to vote.
However, many 'No' voters argued that rewards would lead to votes being cast without the correct intentions, making results less reliable.
One College student cautioned that rewards shouldn't be monetary.