Green is the new black

The Greens have nailed the art of engaging with a new generation of asset-poor voters who are increasingly cynical and distrustful of the two-party system. By Amy Teakle.

The recent Federal Election saw a significant swing against the two major parties, with voters showing a strong favour to minor parties or independents. What is overlooked is the youth vote, which arguably had major sway in the election results. AEC enrollment data has shown that out of the five seats with the highest proportion of young voters (18-29), four of those seats went to the Greens. This is an astounding result for a party that historically has had a niche appeal. So how did a party that used to find its vote in old men in boonie hats and cargo shorts become the party that now appeals to Australia’s inner-city youth? 

Source: Australian Electoral Commission

Among the average 20-something, the Liberals are seen as the party of conformists, money hungry corporate drones and conservative nuclear families. Although the Liberal Party is aware of their lack of appeal to the ‘woke’ youth voter base, the election results prove yet again that the Liberal Party almost always misses the mark when it comes to engaging with young voters. Their contrived use of ‘meme warfare’ can be summed up by the quip, “How do you do, fellow kids?”

To be fair, this new youth voter base is particularly harder to connect with than generations prior. They represent a new demographic of voters that are increasingly cynical and distrustful of the current two-party system and are more likely to embrace a set of new socially conscious values. A study conducted by Havas Labs this year was quite revealing on this stark generational gap. Millennials were on average more likely to rate creativity, sustainability and compassion as more important than the traditional Australian values of mateship and nationalism favoured by Baby Boomers. Census data also reveals an increasing median age of marriage, first time parents, and homeowners over the past two decades. It is no wonder that traditional Liberal policies of economic prosperity and empowerment of the family unit are showing little appeal to a generation that is primarily spouseless, childless and assetless. 

Home ownership rates by age group, 1971 to 2016

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

Median age at marriage by sex, 2000 to 2020

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

Median age of first child, 1961 to 2019

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

Greens leader Adam Bandt has been relatively successful in presenting his party’s environment and social justice platform to a new generation of young voters. Late last year, Bandt joined the Auspol ‘shitposting page’, a social media group discussing Australian politics through ironic and provocative memes. Incidentally a Greens staffer had erroneously joined this page using the official party account, in what turned out to be a happy accident for their digital marketing campaign.

Bandt has turned out to be a natural at engaging with the edgy humour of Gen Z voters. Joining an underground ‘shitposting group’ - a phrase most people over the age of 30 have never even heard of - is an extremely effective way for a political leader to connect with young voters who scoff at the formality and ‘out of touch’ nature of traditional politics. Cynicism and dark humour seem to be the political language of Gen Z; anything else is deemed ‘boomer’ or ‘cringe’. Essentially, the first party to ‘speak their language’ is the first party to get their vote. 

Cynicism and dark humour seem to be the political language of Gen Z; anything else, like this meme, is deemed ‘boomer’ or ‘cringe’.

Moreso, the Greens extend themselves as a sort of fashion accessory for the trendy inner city 20-somethings who are disconnected from the realities of the everyday Australian. Emotion and identity seem to be the most decisive factors in swaying the younger voter, who can afford to be politically vacuous, and support whichever party panders to the latest social justice fad.

There is no point in the Liberal party adopting left-wing policies for the sake of appeasing this demographic. Even if the Liberals had a policy platform identical to that of the Greens, they still wouldn’t appeal.

In a way, the rise of the Greens during the recent federal election is not solely credited to widespread climate hysteria or the mass disillusionment with the two major parties. The Greens have maintained a strategic focus on their appeal to impressionable and disenfranchised first time voters who are yet to find any other party that speaks to them.

Amy Teakle is an intern as part of the Menzies Research Centre’s Future Leader Initiative. Find out more about the program here.