[School General Election Project] Results of a survey on attitudes towards politics and elections: Over 90% of all generations responded that "my voice is not being heard by the government"

2023.09.29 Press Releases
CCCMK Holdings Co., Ltd.

- The 5th online voting for "Most Recent Political Parties" begins on September 29th -

CCCMK Holdings Co., Ltd. (Head office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Takahashi Yoshinori; hereinafter referred to as "CCCMKHD") is working on the "School General Election Project" (https://youthvote.tsite.jp/), a social project that connects the junior and senior high school generation, who will be responsible for the future, with politics and society. The project's mission is to convey the voices of the younger generation to the world and create opportunities for social change.

Survey objectives and background

The School General Election Project, which aims to create a society where the voices of the younger generation are listened to and the rules and systems necessary for the future are actively discussed, collects online votes once a year on the theme of "Political party most hopeful" with the aim of raising voting awareness among young people in their teens and twenties. In the fourth survey, conducted from June to July 2022, a total of 14,024 votes were cast from young people aged 10 to 29. We are pleased to announce that the 5th "Political Party Most Expected" online voting will be held from Friday, September 29th to Sunday, October 22nd, 2023. https://youthvote.tsite.jp/Theme/Theme) will be launched.
This time, we will report the results of a "Political and Election Awareness Survey" conducted in August 2023 targeting all generations, ahead of the 5th "Most Respected Political Parties" online voting. Based on the results of this survey, we hope to encourage more people to take an interest in politics and elections, and to encourage them to participate in the online voting for the "party they look up to."

Survey results

①    国の政治への関心度合い

In response to the question, "How interested are you in national politics?", the highest percentage of people who answered "very interested" were teenagers (13.3%), followed by those in their 60s and older (11.2%) and those in their 20s (10.9%). On the other hand, the highest percentage of people who answered that they were "not interested at all" were "teenagers (8.0%)," followed by "people in their 20s (6.5%)."
Furthermore, when combining the responses of "very interested," "interested," and "somewhat interested," we found that interest in politics tends to increase with age. In particular, interest in politics among those in their 60s and older (82.6%) is higher than other generations, and is 1.35 times higher than among teenagers (61.2%).

②    選挙の投票頻度について

Next, we asked, "How often have you voted since gaining the right to vote?" and found that the percentage of people who answered "I always vote" tended to increase with age. Among these, the lowest percentage was those in their 20s (38.6%), with a response rate of only about 70% of the highest percentage, those in their 60s and older (53.9%).

③    自分の声が届いていると感じるか／自分の将来についてどのように感じるか

In addition, when asked, "Do you feel that your voice is being heard by the government or local authorities?", over 90% of people answered "Not at all (42.6%)" or "Not very much (49.3%)", indicating that they feel that their voice is not being heard by the government or local authorities.
Furthermore, when asked "How do you feel about your future?", over 80% of people answered "I feel very anxious (36.7%)" and "I feel somewhat anxious (45.9%)", indicating that they are anxious about their future.
Furthermore, there was no significant difference in the percentage of responses to any of the questions across age groups, suggesting that a sense of distance from the government and its administration and anxiety about the future are common across all generations.

④    将来を不安に感じる理由

In addition, when the free-form responses to the question "Why do you feel anxious about your future?" were compiled into a word cloud, the most frequently occurring word was "pension."Other words related to economic anxiety, such as "prices," "taxes," "salaries," and "money," were also frequently mentioned.
Specific answers included, "The prices of many things have risen so much that it seems we won't be able to build a house any more. "I'm scared I'll have to pay more taxes than ever before" (woman in her 20s), "I don't know how much pension I'll get in the future, but I'm paying a lot of taxes despite my low salary" (man in his 20s), and many young people expressed pessimism about the future due to the tight economic situation that has been caused by recent price hikes and tax increases.

Comments from the School General Election Project

While interest in national politics and voting behavior tend to increase with age, it was striking that the majority of people in all age groups felt that "my voice is not being heard by the government or the administration" and "I feel anxious about the future."In the field of voting awareness promotion, the focus is on changing the behavior of people who do not vote (getting them to vote), but I feel that society as a whole also needs to address the issue that even people who vote do not feel that their voices are being heard.

In addition, it may be particularly difficult for young people with little experience voting to suddenly express their opinions at a time when elections are held unexpectedly. However, I believe that it is difficult for teenagers and people in their twenties, whose lives are changing more dramatically than those of other generations and who are therefore busier, to keep thinking about politics and society on a daily basis. In this context, we hope that the online voting in the "School General Election Project," which is conducted periodically, will serve as a "dress rehearsal" for the elections that will eventually come. Please use this online poll as an opportunity to reflect on your own opinions.

Online voting for "Most Respectable Party" begins on Friday, September 29th

Starting Friday, September 29, 2023, online voting will begin for people in their teens and twenties on the theme, "Which political party do you hope for now?"Anyone of the target age can vote through the official School General Election Project website. The results of the vote, including the percentage of votes each political party received that the current generation of young people have high hopes for and the reasons for their expectations, will be announced on our website and on the official note of the School General Election Project at a later date.
・Voting period: September 29, 2023 (Friday) to October 22, 2023 (Sunday)

・Voting results announcement: Scheduled for November 2023

Overview of the survey on attitudes towards politics and elections

Survey period: August 23rd to August 25th, 2023
Survey method: Internet survey (T questionnaire)
Survey subjects: 2,814 people aged 16 to 60 years old nationwide

Overview of the "School General Election Project"

■Project name: School General Election Project

■Project start date: Tuesday, October 13, 2020
■Project details: The "School General Election Project" is based on CCC's founding intention of "providing a base for young people with information on new lifestyles," and is a "place" where young people who will be responsible for the future can co-create new discoveries and ideas that will serve as the foundation for living in the future. Aimed at the younger generation, from junior high and high school students to those in their 20s, we will raise themes related to issues affecting the future generation of young people from a wide range of areas, from politics and social issues to higher education and school, and provide neutral information on the issues raised and a forum for deeper dialogue among people of the same generation. By actually "voting" on the website, we will create an opportunity for each junior and senior high school student to take an active role and express their opinions. We also publish articles on note reporting on voting results that compile the "voices" of junior and senior high school students, as well as interviews with experts, and we also provide a forum for planning and dialogue with opinion leaders.

This book examines the true feelings of Generation Z, which were revealed through the activities of the "School General Election Project," using vast amounts of data and real-life conversations. The data is divided into three major themes: "Generation Z x Politics," "Generation Z x Gender Equality," and "Generation Z x Environmental Issues," and is graphed for easy-to-understand explanations.

Materials related to this matter

[School General Election Project] Results of a survey on attitudes towards politics and elections: Over 90% of all generations responded that "my voice is not being heard by the government"

Inquiries regarding this matter

CCCMK Holdings Co., Ltd.
Public Relations Officer: Hatanaka
TEL: 03-6800-4464