Awareness Survey of 18-Year-Olds – Politics and the ElectionResults of 70th installment announced – More than 60% think ‘Politics should change,’ roughly 40% ‘Intend to vote in Upper House election’
The 70th installment of the Awareness Survey of 18-Year-Olds, launched by The Nippon Foundation in October 2018, was carried out on May 23-26 to gauge young people’s interest and level of trust in politics, its effects on their own daily lives, and their intention to vote in the Upper House election to be held on July 20.
Roughly half of respondents replied that they are interested in politics. There was a large gap between women and men, however, with 58% of male respondents saying that they are interested in politics, while the figure for female respondents was 36%. With regard to their impression of politics, the percentage of respondents agreeing with five statements including politics “Can be trusted,” “Is ‘clean’ (fair and transparent),” and “Can be counted upon” was only roughly 12%, which is also reflected in the fact that roughly two in three respondents (64%) believed that “Japan’s politics should change.”
On the topic of whether their own vote has an effect on Japanese politics, 40% replied that it does, surpassing the close to 10% who replied that it does not, and 38% of all respondents said that they intend to vote in the upcoming Upper House election.
On the other hand, close to 70% of male respondents and close to 90% of female respondents replied that they were not confident in their knowledge of politics, and 37% replied that they did not know that the election was to elect members of the national legislature or that they were not familiar with the term “Upper House election” itself, suggesting large gaps in young people’s awareness of and attitudes toward politics.
Highlights of the 70th Awareness Survey of 18-Year-Olds – Politics and the Election
Interest in today’s politics in Japan
- Interested – 47.7%
- Not interested – 35.0%
- “Interested” is the total of “Very interested” and “Somewhat interested,” and “Not interested” is the total of “Not very interested” and “Not at all interested.”
Impression of today’s politics in Japan
- Positive impression – 12.1%
- Negative impression – 63.2%
- “Positive impression” is the average total of those who replied “Agree” or “Somewhat agree” for five statements: Politics in Japan today “Can be trusted,” “Is ‘clean’ (fair and transparent),” “Can be counted upon,” “Is flexible,” and “Is leading Japanese society in the right direction.” “Negative impression” is the average total of those who replied “Somewhat disagree” or “Disagree” with those five statements.
Intention to vote in the upcoming Upper House election
- Intend to vote – 37.8%
- Do not intend to vote – 20.5%
- Will not be eligible to vote during the summer (July-August) of 2025 – 17.0%
- “Intend to vote” is the total of “Definitely intend to vote” and “Probably will vote,” and “Do not intend to vote” is the total of “Probably will not vote” and “Definitely will not vote.”
Survey Excerpts
Interest in today’s politics in Japan
Impression of today’s politics in Japan
Intention to vote in the upcoming Upper House election
Notes:
- From the 13th survey, the number of respondents, comprising men and women aged 17 to 19, has been increased to 1,000 from 800.
- With the exception of the 20th, 46th, and 62nd installments, all surveys cover respondents in Japan only.
Related Link
Contact
Global Communications Team
The Nippon Foundation
- Email: info_global_communication@ps.nippon-foundation.or.jp
