Social media influencers rallied the youth to vote — but our power doesn’t end at the ballot box

So We Vote posts. Images: Instagram

By Naledi Sikhakhane and Tamsin Metelerkamp

17 Jun 2024

First-time voters participated in the elections, even though ‘the political space looks very toxic’ to them. Now, they need to remember that they don’t have to wait until the next election to have a say in how they are governed.

Kabelo Kemp (21) was nervous on election day. Through Defend Our Democracy, he was an election observer, and on voting day he was concerned about how he would be received, and he was also burdened by the weight of indecision: for whom would he vote? He wanted to make the right choice.

“There were so many options when going to vote and it was very overwhelming. I hadn’t made up my mind by the time I got to the voting station. I voted much later, after I had seen and spoken to different people and checked what was going on online. I think that influenced my choice,” said Kemp.

Kemp may not be the only young person who turned to social media to help them to make choices about whether to vote, and if so, for whom.

Online content creators, some with hundreds of thousands of followers, shared the significance of voting, and gave the lay of the political land – some even went so far as to punt their chosen party.

Beauty influencer Kay Yarms, who has more than half a million followers, and TikTok creator Karabo “Kay” Mahapa, who has 350,000 followers, were profiled by the BBC in an article that suggested social media influencers had become the country’s political mobilisers, rallying young people to be active citizens and make their mark.

social media influencers Beauty influencer Kay Yarms. (Photo: Instagram)

#FeesMustFall, #Blacklivesmatter, #EndSARS (against Nigerian police brutality): that these hashtags are so recognisable proves that social media platforms are a powerful tool to call people – especially young people – to action, here and globally.

While on duty, Kemp spotted other first-time voters at his station. “I met two young people who... were quite excited and even asked me to take pictures of them,” said Kemp.

https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/18162132/

The Independent Electoral Commission has not yet said whether there was an uptick in youth engagement in these elections. But days before we went to the polls chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo noted that people between the ages of 20 and 29 led the pack during the final voter registration weekend, making up about 77% of new registrations.

Previous elections have shown young people’s participation dwindling, which Kemp says is because the youth feel cut out of the economy and centres of decision-making. “There is exclusion in politics, democracy, activism... young people are put in their little corner.

“Also the political space looks very toxic, very violent. It just doesn’t seem like a space you would want to engage with, even though the politics does affect us as the youth. So maybe as young people we need to force ourselves into those spaces, otherwise we risk getting drowned out,” said Kemp. – Naledi Sikhakhane

Part 2: Looking to the future, we need to be engaged, proactive and wise

South Africa has entered a new political era. The 2024 national elections resulted in the ANC losing its majority in Parliament for the first time since the dawn of democracy 30 years ago, and a national unity government has been formed from the ANC, DA and IFP – parties that have stood in opposition to one another historically.

This is a different political landscape, where leaders have no choice but to collaborate across party lines, but it is also a time in which populist politics and threats to our constitutional principles are at an all-time high.

So, what role do young South Africans have to play in this rocky new democratic reality? For a start, they need to remember that they don’t have to wait until the next election to have a say in how they are governed. We live in a participatory democracy, which means more than having the power to vote. Citizens have opportunities to be involved in decision-making on matters that affect their lives from day to day, month to month.

Image: Instagram

It is my hope that, over the next five years, young people will use the mechanisms available to hold elected officials to account, from giving public comment on proposed legislation to attending the Independent Development Plan meetings that shape resource allocation in their municipalities.

In the words of Otsile Nkadimeng, a young climate activist and executive director of So We Vote: “Young people can’t be people who just exist in South African society any longer, who just move in whatever direction the wind blows or the ocean tides turn.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Catch up on all the nominations, votes and elections during the National Assembly’s first sitting

“We need to see young people being more proactive. We need to see the leaders who exist in youth spaces being elevated and supported. Above and beyond that, we need to see those leaders demonstrate the type of change we want to see in politics and in governance.”

So We Vote is a Generation Z-led advocacy group that worked to get more young people registered to vote in the 2024 election. It is one of many youth-led groups across South Africa trying to make a difference from the ground up.

Young people have long been integral to activism and civil society. As people try to tackle old problems such as poverty, inequality and social exclusion in new ways, it has never been more important to have the youth’s representation in our social justice organisations.

However, during this time of growth and change, there is also potential for instability and violence. With that in mind, my final message to young South Africans is simple: don’t give in to populism and narratives rooted in hate.

The youth have every reason to be frustrated. Unemployment is high, opportunities are scarce, and inflammatory misinformation is rife on social media platforms and the internet. Political actors will seek to use this frustration for their benefit and to the detriment of others.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofmlLF6NMwk

The leaders we need are not the ones who make the most outrageous promises, but the ones who put cooperative action and the good of the people before their own self-serving agendas.

I am an example of the young people striving to understand and shape how our country is run. As a young journalist on the front line of political and social action, I have chosen to bear witness to the decisions of leaders and the stories of communities in the hope that I can be part of building a better world. I ask nothing of my contemporaries that I do not expect of myself: to be honest, fair and engaged. The future we all will live in depends on it. – Tamsin Metelerkamp

This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.

Categories:

Tags:

DM is much better if you are signed in...

Politics

Part 2: Looking to the future, we need to be engaged, proactive and wise