London mayoral election: One in four young adults 'unaware of photo ID need' to vote, new poll

YouGov survey for Royal Holloway University of London found 24 per cent of Londoners aged 18 to 24 did not know of this legal requirement
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

One in four young Londoners does not know about the need for photo ID to vote in the London mayoral election, a new poll reveals.

The YouGov survey for the Department of Politics at Royal Holloway University of London found 24 per cent of Londoners aged 18 to 24 were not aware of this legal requirement for local and regional elections in England and at the general election.

This compares to four per cent of Londoners aged 65 and over having this lack of awareness about the need for photo ID, seven per cent for 50 to 64-year-olds, and 13 per cent for the 25-49 age group.

The poll also found that 72 per cent of Londoners aged 18 to 24 eligible to take part in the mayoral election knew they were registered to vote, with 18 per cent saying they were not, and ten per cent “I am not sure”.

In contrast, 98 per cent of these residents in the capital aged 65 and over knew they were on the electoral register, 96 per cent of those aged 50 to 64, and 88 per cent for 25 to 49-year-olds.

Two thirds of Londoners aged 65 and over say they are “absolutely certain to vote”, compared to just 30 per cent of those aged 18 to 24.

Professor James Sloam, an expert in youth politics at Royal Holloway University of London, said: “Young people tend to be more interested in issues, such as the environment, housing and mental health, than elections and party politics compared to older people.

“There is also a problem with awareness, registration and intention to vote for young people, particularly from disadvantaged or marginalised backgrounds.

“Young Londoners are six times as likely to be unaware as Londoners over the age of 65 about the need for photo ID to be able to take part in the mayoral election.

“This is a barrier to vote that is unnecessary and should not have been put in place given the very small number of electoral fraud cases.”

Young adults in London are far more likely to vote for Labour mayor Sadiq Khan, according to polls, than for Tory candidate Susan Hall who is ahead among the 65 and over age group.

Ministers have faced accusation of weighting the new requirement against young people as election officials will be able to accept 22 forms of ID, including passports, driving licences, Oyster 60+ cards and older or disabled person’s bus passes, but not some ID used by young people including 18+ Student Oyster card.

Police investigated 342 cases of alleged electoral fraud in 2023, with just one leading to a conviction last year.

Thousands of people were stopped from voting in last year’s local elections as they did not have the correct ID.

* YouGov interviewed 1,157 adults in London online between April 9 and 17. Data are weighted.