Paper Workshop - Youth without representation: Discovering the mechanisms behind youth’s underrepresentation in elected bodies

Twenty-five years ago, Pippa Norris (1997) aptly described that parliaments are composed of middle-aged to senior men of the dominant ethnicity. Over the past two decades, this picture has somewhat changed. In particular, when it comes to gender and ethnicity, parliaments across the globe have become more diverse. Unfortunately, the same diversification has not taken place when it comes to young MPs. To highlight, worldwide, people under 30 represent only 2 percent of MPs, while they represent 50 percent of the population (Magni-Berton & Panel 2020). By contrast, the average country leader is 60 years old.

In this workshop, we will investigate the reasons for this continued underrepresentation of youth in positions of elected office. In most countries, there is a three-step process for getting elected: First, declaring candidacy, i.e., becoming an aspirant. Second, winning a party nomination in an uninominal electoral system or being placed on an (electable) list position in a PR system. Third, being elected. In this workshop, we want to decipher which of these steps in the funnel of representation is (more) relevant in determining youth’s underrepresentation in parliaments and other elected bodies.
Is the problem of youth representation a supply problem with not enough young adults willing to run? Is there sustained discrimination in the political system or within parties that blocks youths from candidacy or from elections? Do voters systematically disadvantage younger candidates? And how is the working of these factors conditioned by systemic determinants like the electoral system, degree of democracy, as well as candidacy and voting age requirements?

We seek answers to these questions and are interested in theoretical and empirical papers (either in-depth case analyses, comparative, or large-N studies) that try to establish why and how youth are (most) disadvantaged in the funnel of representation.

We invite original contributions from scholars with a background in political science, sociology, and related fields. We ask for submissions by researchers at all career levels and we plan to build a special issue in a reputable journal around the papers presented at the workshop.

Submissions
• Deadline: February 28, 2022
• Submissions to be uploaded using submission form on website
• Required: extended abstract (max. 400 words)
• Notifications to be sent by April, 2022
• Full paper submission by August 15, 2022 (6,000-8,000 words)

Format
• Conference with personal attendance (online participation will be possible)
• Conference language: English.

Conference Place and Dates
• Ottawa, Canada: September 13th-14th 2022
(APSA conference September 15th-18th in Montreal, less than 2 hours by train from Ottawa)
• School of Political Studies, University of Ottawa
• Costs covered: lunches and accommodation (2 nights)

For more information, or to submit an abstract, visit the event website or email us at youthpoliticalrep@gmail.com