Youth Political Involvement in 12
thSarawak State Election
Khadijah Zahirah Sufri1*, Nur Aida Kipli1, Sarehan Sadikin2
1 Faculty of Administrative Science and Policy Studies, UiTM Shah Alam
2Faculty of Administrative Science and Policy Studies, UiTM Cawangan Sarawak
*Corresponding Author: [email protected]
Received: 10 October 2022 | Accepted: 10 July 2023 | Published: 30 July 2023
DOI:https://doi.org/10.55057/ajress.2023.5.2.38 __________________________________________________________________________________________
Abstract: In new and emerging democracies, the inclusion of young people in political processes has become a significant fundamental value to build a stable and peaceful societies.
However, following the previous 12th Sarawak State Election, it shows a declining trend in youth political participation. Thus, this paper aims to explain the review of the literatures of Malaysian youth reluctant to get involved in politics. Thus, conceptual framework in this research was developed based on numerous literature reviews in the effort to understand the importance political participation of youth in terms of conventional politics especially in state election and general election. This study used a mixed methodology for data collection in which combining both qualitative and quantitative data. Qualitative inputs involved interviews on a focus group of four people with relevant understanding in a skill and specialties. The construction of research instruments, validation and dependability of equipment, data collecting, data analysis, and drafting of reports and recommendations are the five (5) primary aspects of this quantitative research approach. The discussion of this study may contribute the ideas to overcome the challenges on the youth hesitance in political participation and exposing the knowledge of politics for a better nation.
Keywords: Election, Political involvement, Political participation, Sarawak State Election, Youth.
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1. Introduction
This study will therefore help in understanding the youth involvement in state election, to be specific in 12th Sarawak state election. A conflict arises when studying the political participation of young adults in contemporary Europe. Evidence cited by supporters of the disengagement theory is that youth are the least likely generation to vote at the national level, the drop of youth membership is declining, and there is a general lack of enthusiasm for politics among millennials (Weiss, 2020). The participation of young people in political systems is vital because individuals between the age of 15 and 35 make up a daily group in daily life. The millennials participations in political systems have the potential to improve the standard of democratic government (Ahmad & Zain, 2021). Youth is defined in this study as a person between the ages of 25 to 40 years old in accordance with the Malaysian definition at the time of the study (Ting & Ahmad, 2021). Malaysia’s political scene has become so fractured that no single political party has gained sufficient power to lead the country. The emergence of a new fresh youth-led political movement gives a chance for it to begin leading platforms that will attract young people and provide them with a platform to express themselves (An Emergence of Youth Participation in Malaysian Politics | IDEAS, 2021). In today’s globalizing
world, political participation is a crucial component of our society because it has a direct impact on how we live our lives. Individuals who participate in government policies are likely to anticipate, or at the very least hope, that their activities will have some impact on the policies of the government.
In Malaysia, Lee (2018) found that interpersonal conversation, voluntary organization membership and a higher level of education are predictors of political interest. From a conventional political participation lens, class (Jesudason 1996; Welch and Studlar 1985) and ethnic background (Lee 2010; Weiss 1999; Welch and Studlar 1985; Welsh 2014) predict conventional political involvement among Malaysian youth. Ting and Wan Ahmad (2017) found moderate levels of perceived efficacy to engage in political action and dominance in political conversations, with male respondents professing more confidence. However, the political participation of Malaysian youth (0.52) is still lower than its regional counterparts such as Thailand (0.63), Taiwan (0.79) and Indonesia (1.20). This means that the impact of political participation among Malaysian youth is not substantial enough to generate a significant wave of change in informal politics (see Berthin 2014; Suchowerska 2013). On a global basis, there has been an increase in the amount of scholarly attention paid to the issue of youth involvement and democracy. Young people in a variety of countries have developed innovative methods of political participation and expressing grievances to influence political processes and improve their lives (Zerdem and Podder 2015; Yom et al. 2019; Lynch et al.
2019; Pickard 2019; Sloam et al. 2019; Sloam and Henn 2019; Yom, Lynch et al. 2019). When it comes to political participation, young people are frequently portrayed as disengaged, isolated, and/or apathetic by adults (Kitanova, 2020).
Youth participation in politics is significant because they are a group of people who are active in everyday life between the ages of 15 to 35 and do have a voice in politics (Ahmad & Zain, 2021). Their participation in politics has potential to improve the overall quality of democratic governance. Consequently, all government around the world, including Malaysia, should encourage young people to become more involved in government activities and political participation, including things such as joining political parties, participating in political discussions, belonging to activist groups, voting and other activities that consider youth to involve directly and indirectly towards politics. Hence, it is critical to find out recognize what stimulates young people to engage in political achievements. The contribution of young people and their involvement in the political, social, and economic fields in the country have underlines the necessity for young people to participate in various activities and programmes.
Given that the youth participation in the political arena is essential in the democratic process and to facilitate the development goals of a country, youth should be given equal opportunities and should be allowed to benefit from all the programmes and policies planned by the government by encouraging meaningful political participations of the youth at all levels (Sarok
& Azahar, 2017).
2. Purpose of the Study
According to data from Malaysian Election Commission from 2018, as many as 3.8 million eligible voters did not register in time for the election. Moreover, two-thirds of them from the majority are in their 20s. (Lee, 2018). In Malaysia, youth participation in politics was ranked in the lowest five out of 51 Commonwealth countries, according to the World Economic Forum (Commonwealth Youth Programme Report, 2013). As reported by the Malaysian Statistical Department, out of the 13.4 million youths in the country, 3.9 million (2007) and 2.9 million (2009) did not register to vote when they reached the legal voting age of 21 in 2007 and 2009.
According to the most recent data from the Institute for Youth Research Malaysia, political socialization among Malaysian youngsters is still at a moderate level (IYRES, 2018). A reduction in two variables, Involvement in Political Activities and Following Political Developments, was observed in comparison to the previous year. Other statistics has been carried out by Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya Malaysia (2017), regarding the 11th Sarawak State Election, the age group of the youth which is between 21-29 years old contribute 11.58% while from the age of 30-39 years old contribute 20.82% towards 11th Sarawak State Election. As for the 12th Sarawak State Election, taken from Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya Malaysia (2021), the voting trend shows a decline trend which for the age group 21-29 contribute 8.74% while there is an increase for the age group of 30-39 years old which are 21.68%. Hence, why there is decline voting trend for the youth.
For a democratic country like Malaysia, declining youth participation is a very critical issue in the nation’s development agenda. As stated in Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya Malaysia (2021), the total number of registered voters in Sarawak is 1.25 million. However, as mentioned by Ahmad and Zain (2021), the involvement of youth or Generation Y in politics is vital because this group represents almost half of the in Malaysia. Additionally, Esa and Hashim (2017), emphasize that without understanding of the election, young will be viewed as less empowered to do such activities. 39 % of youth feel their choices can affect how their communities solves problems, compared to 61% who are unaware and believe their decision has no effect on politics. Other than that, as mentioned by Esa and Hashim (2017), they indicated that while Sarawak’s youth have sufficient awareness of political issues and they lack the intrinsic motivation to participate in politics. Moreover, as mentioned by Grasso, 2019; Sloam, 2016;
Sloam and Henn (2019), the main problem that arises is most of the studies shows the participation of youth in conventional politic has been decreased over decade. According to survey done by Esa and Hashim (2017), most of the youth are politically circumspect due to a lack of information and knowledge. On every continent, there is empirical evidence of youth disengagement from political activities (Samsudin, Ching & Hasan, 2019). Disengagement from political activities is frequently measured in terms of declining interest in politics, low turnout for political elections and a low number of registered voters (Delli, Carpini, 2000; Pirie
& Worcester, 2000; Phelps, 2004). Young people’s political apathy according to the researchers is a huge threat to democratic societies throughout the world.
In summary, several studies indicate that there are certain issues regarding youth involvement towards politic. The first issue arises is lack of awareness on the part of young voters. This is because youth are not really engaged to politics at an early age. Additionally, the other issue is that young voters will vote for the party regardless of the candidates or will vote for the candidates regardless of their party affiliation. As a result, this will influence the outcome of the election. Finally, but certainly not least, one of the issues affecting adolescent voting preferences is a lack of understanding about current events. This is because younger folks are unconcerned with local or global issues. This will have effect on the election outcome, as voters will simply vote for the party that will take no action on several concerns.
3. Literature Review
3.1 The History of 1st-11th Sarawak State Election
Unlike in West Malaysia, Sarawak’s politics are far more dynamic, diverse, and interesting.
Sarawak’s government has changed several times since Malaysia formation in 1963. Politics in our country has also generated greater emotion and intensity from the grassroots, and there is always the element of surprise. Sarawak has suffered threats to its autonomy from the federal
government throughout the years, despite its unique circumstance (Osman & Ali, 2016).
Sarawak’s ties with the federal government reached a low point in 1966 when the Federal Government utilized emergency powers to amend Sarawak’s constitution. As mentioned by Ishak (2017), initial clashes erupted over the Governor of Sarawak’s election, the expatriate issue, and the usage of the Malay language, notably in education. Other than that, Sarawak held its first state election on May 10, 1969, following the dissolution of the Dewan Rakyat and the Sarawak’s Council Negeri on March 20, 1969 (BP Editor 10, 2021). Therefore, in 1976, Sarawak modified its constitution to modify the name of the Council Negeri to the Dewan Undangan Negeri, or State Legislative Assembly, which became effective (BP Editor 10, 2021).
Table 1: Previous State Sarawak Elections Years
Candidate Nomination
Day
Poll Day Period of
Election Voters Percentage of voting
Total of seats/districts
1969*1970 12 April
10th May – 7th Jun 29th July
28 days 332, 737 80.0
48 1974 8 August 24th August –
14th September 21 days 375,882 75.1
1979 - 5th July – 22nd
July 8 days - 72.8
1983 8 December 28th December – 29th December
2 days
552, 184 72.6 1987 19th March 15th April – 16th
April 625,270 73.0
1991 14th September 27th December –
28th December 703,061 72.80 56
1996 27 August 7th August – 8th
August 814, 347 65.95 62
2001 18th September 27th September
1 day 868, 487 67.01 62
2006 9th May 20th May 892, 537 63.22 71
2011 6th April 16th April 1 day 672, 667 71
2016 25th April 7th May 1 day 777,018 70.01 82
Sources taken: Nur Aida Kipli, 2017
3.2 The 12th Sarawak State Elections
The 12th Sarawak state election was conducted on Saturday, May 7, 2016, following candidate nominations on Monday, December 6, 2021. The Sarawak State Legislative Assembly's 82 seats were voted in single-member constituencies using first-past-the-post voting. Just at time of the election, more than 1.1 million people in Sarawak who had their names registered or retained in an electoral register for a specific electoral district were entitled to vote. Malaysia does not have mandatory voting or automatic voter registration. There are 8 total of political parties that has been listed in the 12th Sarawak State Election. Among it is Barisan Nasional, DAP, PKR, PAS, SUPP, and four other parties. 12th Sarawak Election candidate nomination day was held on 6th December 2021 followed by early voting on the 14th of December and lastly is the election day itself which is on the 18 December 2021. As the new surprise for this election was there are a young candidate represent for the political party which is at the age of 24 years old and the oldest candidate was 79 years old Out of 1.2 million registered voters in Sarawak, only 759,627 voters, or 60.67% voted for the 12th Sarawak State Election. The party that won was GPS with 76 followed by PBS 4 and DAP 2 chairs. Unfortunately, 12th Sarawak Election shows a decline trend compared to the previous state election. GPS won 76 seats in
the election, giving them a clear majority in the state legislature. This was the first time GPS had won an election as a local coalition in Sarawak's history. The Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) won four seats, making it the largest opposition party in Malaysia and the first Sarawak-based opposition party to win a seat in an election since 2006. PH, on the other hand, suffered a humiliating defeat, with the Democratic Action Party (DAP) winning only two seats for the coalition, a significant decrease from the previous year's seven seats won by the DAP. Its other constituent parties, the People's Justice Party (PKR) and the National Trust Party (AMANAH), were defeated in all of the seats that they were contesting (Wikipedia Contributors, 2022).
3.3 Constitutional politics / conventional political participation
Participation in political daily existence is necessary if one is interested in bolstering the operation of a democratic system. It is difficult to call a country democratic if its citizens are not actively involved in the political process (Ngah & Mohamed, 2019). According to the claims of a number of academics, the form of democracy that exists in Malaysia is closer to that of a semi-democracy than a full democracy. Voting, having personal interactions with those who make decisions, lobbying for political change, and running for public office are just some of the many ways that people can get involved in politics (NSTP, 1990). In addition, Verba et al. (1978) stated that effective participation leads to vital relationships between all other social and political goals. In the United States, the African were more likely to participate in politics under the following conditions: membership in an organization, feeling of a common threat, and a less conservative political climate (Platt 2008). According to Tang and Lee (2013), the act of joining a political group, conversing with politicians, voting in elections, lending support to petitions, and getting involved during the campaign period are all examples of political participation. Campaigns are essential because they give voters access to fundamental information as well as opportunities to choose their political representatives. Hence, these are the examples of constitutional politics which involves mostly civic participation. In addition, Huntington and Nelson had a conversation about the various behaviours that are associated with political participation. The first category consists of electoral activities such as voting, working in the election, and participating in activities related to campaigning. The next step is lobbying, which can involve building support for a particular legislative proposal or building opposition to that proposal. An additional form is known as organisational activity, which refers to an individual's participation in an organisation as a member in order to exert influence over the decision-making process of the government. Research conducted by Mazli, Abdul Razak, and Abdul Rashid (2019) revealed that only a small percentage of Malay students join political parties. Out of a total of 411 respondents, only 72 (16.3 percent) joined political parties. Participating in politics can be done in a variety of ways, including running for office, casting a vote, signing a petition, joining a political party, or taking part in a political forum.
Direct participation in political activities requires one to have some level of involvement in political parties, such as holding a membership in one of those parties; this is because holding a membership in a political party demonstrates one's dedication to publicly supporting that party (Hussain, 1974). Youth political participation rates are significantly lower in newly established democracies compared to advanced democracies, which have higher youth political participation rates. According to the findings of the study, older people (those in their 25s and 30s) are more likely to participate in any kind of formal politics compared to younger people (18-25) (Kitanova, 2019).
3.4 Non institutional politics / unconventional political participation
Most non-institutional political participants are societal pessimists who place their faith in other people, civic participants are societal optimists who place their faith in other people, and most political consumers are political pessimists who place their faith in politics (Steenvorden,
2018). Political participation is regarded as essential for a democratic society because it provides a means for citizens to communicate their preferences to those in positions of authority. In fact, research indicates that everyday interactions might promote citizen participation in collective actions such as protests and marches. Opp (2004) observed in research conducted in Leipzig that more than 70 percent of respondents would engage in a protest if they felt strongly dissatisfied with a policy and knew they could make a difference.
Jeong (2013) concluded that South Koreans who participated in civic organisations (such as labour unions, religious organisations, sports and recreation, arts and education, professionals, charity works, consumer and environmental organisations) were more likely to sign a petition and participate in a protest, but not necessarily to vote. Similarly, Canadian youth who volunteered were more likely to participate in protests and sign petitions (Bastedo 2015).
There are a lot of different things that could affect how much young people understand about politics. One of the factors that can be influential is the parents, because the political views that the parents hold can have an effect on the political views that their children hold (Sihabuddin Zuhri, 2010). Peers, education, social media, and traditional media are some of the other aspects that can have an effect on the political beliefs of young people (Judith Moeller & Claes de Vreese, 2013; Nam Jin Lee et al, 2012). According to the Malaysian Youth Score Index 2015, young people are more likely to feel at ease discussing and communicating about political issues with friends or peers, members of their families, and teachers or lecturers. This is in contrast to their willingness to directly engage in political fields (Nor Anita, 2017). Young voters are more likely to know more about current political issues from mass media than from their parents, schools, or friends. This is because young voters are more likely to have access to mass media (Kathryn, 2004). When compared to other types of media such as news, academic articles, or newspapers, mass media, such as the internet, is regarded as the primary source of information gathering. Social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, have gained the highest ratings among young people. (Noor Azma, 2014).
3.5 Political Participation
Whereas in the previous era, individuals’ political participation was primarily connected thru social movements in political parties such as volunteer work, participation in program, door to door campaign and so on. The recent decade has demonstrated that political parties encounter difficulties in recruiting newcomers, especially the younger ones to their groups. According to the United Nations Global Youth Study conducted in 2016, participation in a political party is significantly less common among individuals under 30 years old than among older adults. The millennials are the group that is the most susceptible to being influenced in any activity. When they observe a workmate, close relative, or even an acquittance running a small business, or participating in any events that benefits them, the younger generation is struck with intrigue, which they use to push themselves farther. Other than that, it was also through this political involvement that the young generation learned to encourage one another, and it is critical to have young people in politics to lead the nation ahead. For example, Rise of Social efforts (ROSE) is nonprofit organization that raised any issues regarding to politics in Sarawak especially in rural areas. According to the Rise of Social Efforts (ROSE), this will have a direct effect in Sarawak, where the young would be disengaged from the upcoming state elections, which are largely expected to be placed when MCO is lifted on August 1 (Editor JM, 2021).
During the 12th state election, there had been a steady decline in the impact of youth on politics.
It clearly demonstrates that there are fewer groups who express concerns about the need of having millennials participate in political participation during this time. This can be seen in the data which illustrates that only 8.74% voted from the age of 21 to 29 years old, and 21.68%
from the age of 30 to 39 years old. Compared to 11th Sarawak State Election, 11.59% voted from the age of 21 to 29 years old, and 20.82% from the age of 30 to 39 years old.
Last but not least, it was expected that millennials would learn about the structure, issues, and practices of democracy through politic awareness, as well as how – thru the skills, values, and information that they learned and can be used to contribute to their communities (Pontes, Henn
& Griffiths, 2019). In Sarawak, it can be seen that in terms of education still it shows no sign of knowledge that relates to politics. Education in Sarawak is still lacking in terms of political understanding, as evidenced by the fact that there is no sign of political awareness in the state.
From what we can observe, most of the candidates that was chosen to be part of the cabinet of State Government are from the baby boomers’ generation and there is no sight of youth representative. During 12th state election, it was also demonstrated that youth are less like to participate in voting since their opinions are not taken into consideration. According to data from the Merdeka Center, the age group between 21 and 40 years old who vote for Sarawak is not treated equitably by the government in Putrajaya (Balakrishnan, 2016). Still, a number of issues that have been raised by Sarawak citizens have contributed to their negative feelings or dissatisfaction towards the state government.
4. Objectives of the Study
The research paper seeks to achieve its general objective of youth involvement in 12th Sarawak State Election by focusing on the following specific objectives:
i. To determine the factors that contribute youth in reluctant to institutional participation in 12th Sarawak State Election
ii. To propose reasons / solutions increasing the institutional political participation that contribute youth participate in institutional political participation for the next upcoming Sarawak State Election (SSE).
5. Research Questions
i. What are the factors that contribute youth reluctant to institutional political participation in 12th Sarawak State Election?
ii. How to encourage youth to institutional political participation for the next upcoming Sarawak State Election?
6. Methodology
To operationalize this research, a mixed method will be employed. Using the qualitative method of structured interviews. This study intends to determine what are the factors to youth reluctant to institutional political participation in the 12th Sarawak State Election. The structured interview will be conducted to support the information’s outcomes; the interviews will be which took place in the context of a focus group consisting of four people, each of whom retains the relevant knowledge due to their expertise or knowledge in a skill or discipline.
The researcher will record the interviews, transcribe, and analyse it before classifying the critical elements and categorised them. In order to support for the data, the researcher additionally evaluated relevant articles from the internet, newspaper, journals, and books. Other than that, the questionnaire-based study is utilised propose reasons / solutions increasing the institutional political participation that contribute youth to participate institutional political participation for the next upcoming state election. 384 respondents will be needed to complete
the quantitative data. The measurement of items in the questionnaires is based on nominal scale which is comprise of a question with yes or no.
8. Conclusion
The present study explores youth political involvement from a slightly different perspective than earlier studies. The review of this literatures is aim to identify the factors that cause Malaysian youth reluctant to get involve in politics and to focus on the 12th Sarawak State Election. The reviews from this study will serve as a guide for the researcher on how to overcome youth apathy towards political participation and increase political literacy amongst the younger generation. The understanding of youth involvement in political participation will assist the government in developing suitable policies, trainings, and initiatives to engage youth involvement and increase their participation for the upcoming state election.
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