By Jason K. Foster
RMIT Journalism Lecturer
In tutorials I ask my, mostly Gen Z students, to create political parties. The requirements: a name, four major policies, and target demographics. The common themes: cost-of-living, housing, HECS debt, and the environment.
Heated discussions ensue. Gen Z care about politics and democracy but, as digital natives, they participate in it differently. Online, around election time, Gen Z-ers search for answers on TikTok and Instagram because many have never been taught democratic processes, because civics teaching is not mandatory in Australian schools.
Politicians do realise the importance of Gen Z votes, but don’t necessarily understand Gen Z. In the 2025 election, the Liberals released an Albo diss-track…it did not go down well. Albo at least went on Abbie Chatfield’s podcast.
Bill Shorten, University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor, wrote in the 2026 Digital News Report that Gen Z have a “rising interest in news and politics.”
“Sixty percent of 18-24-year-olds have never read a newspaper, yet 71 percent access news on social media regularly and 71 percent rely on influencers to get news that they feel is authentic.”
So, why does this matter for the western suburbs and the upcoming state election?
The answer: the Gen Z vote will depend on which politicians appear most ‘authentic’.
An April 2025 Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) media release states 17.8 percent of Australian voters are Gen Z (802, 987 Victorians). A post-2025 federal election research project by The Y Australia also shows Gen Z moved further away from the ‘Coalition’ toward Labor and the Greens.
The electoral map of Melbourne’s west currently reads red (and has done so historically).
But… a June 2026 DemosAU/PremierNational poll found, in broader terms, the LNP leading on primary votes (30 percent), with One Nation in second (23 percent), and Labor third (21 percent). The Greens and Others remained steady (15 percent and 11 percent). The same poll also states that 33 percent of voters aged 18-34 would vote for the Greens and 25 percent for Labor.
Labor presently holds a 54/88 seat majority in the Legislative Assembly, but only 15/40 seats in the Legislative Council.
Parliament of Victoria electoral data cards show the 25–34 year age bracket as the largest number of Victorian voters (15+ percent). Western Metropolitan’s eleven districts reflect similar percentages. Point Cook and Laverton have 20+ percent of Gen Z voters. Tarneit, Werribee, St Albans, Williamstown, Sunbury, Footscray and Kororoit are 15 percent or higher. Sydenham and Niddrie sit slightly below 15 percent.
Gen Z’s primary votes may not decide seats, but their preferences could. In the 2025 Federal election Gen Z, and Millennials, held the most voting power. They didn’t just vote to avoid a fine, many voted to influence political change. The high number of Greens and Teal votes demonstrates disenfranchisement with the major political parties. Mostly, my students tell me, because the major parties have failed to deliver on their promises about democracy.
And why wouldn’t they be disenfranchised?
Democracy equals the Great Australian Dream – but it’s never been harder to buy your first home.
Democracy is about education, getting a better wage to afford a house – except students are leaving their degrees $100,000 in debt.
Democratic participation requires health, housing and safety – but many Gen Z-ers fear rising crime rates and being priced out of private health insurance and city-based rental properties.
You could blame the Premier, the algorithms and echo chambers. Except the algorithms, and even school, never taught them about the Westminster system. For example, if you don’t live in Bendigo East, you didn’t actually vote for Jacinta Allen, the Labor caucus elected her as leader after Daniel Andrews’ resignation. The algorithms also don’t necessarily explain Australia’s preferential voting system or how to number all the boxes. After my students discuss and promote their political parties in tutorials, we watch TikToks/Instagram posts made by young journalists on preferential voting processes. We discuss how and why it matters, then stage a mock vote.
Gen Z are not passive slaves to their algorithms either. They know their ‘algos’ influence their thoughts about ‘Albo’. So, they fact-check, ask their friends, or seek further clarification. Challenging their algorithms can be empowering for them to create their public sphere. Gen Z’s discontent with democracy may not always be apparent because their discontent has spilt into what Jurgen Habermas calls a ‘multitude of intersecting public spheres.’
Gen Z, in their public spheres, do care about politics and democracy. So, instead of assuming their disinterest, let’s involve them into robust discussions about #whydemocracymatters.
