Ford’s remarks so far as party leader have offered little incentive for most youth to get out to the polls and vote for the PCs, and he hasn’t made a huge effort to appeal to them by explaining how his current policies would affect them. Unless they share conservative economic values of lower taxes and spending cuts, or more social conservative views with regards to the education curriculum, for now, most likely won’t be strongly motivated to get out and vote for the PCs.

The NDP has made somewhat of an effort to appeal to younger voters so far. NDP leader Andrea Horwath announced that her party would work to turn part of student loans into grants. Also, she promised universal dental benefits for all Ontarians, which would appeal to younger residents who may be starting their careers and not have benefits.

However, many of those aged 18 to 24 who are already politically-engaged are looking to the Liberals, and it’s not clear if those few promises from the NDP would be enough to sway the youth their way. After all, the Liberal Party has so far given individuals 24 years old and younger “free” (government funded) prescription drugs. They also increased the minimum wage, which has been very popular for younger residents who are more likely to be working on minimum wage.

Leading up to the election season in May, however, pretty much all three main political parties have not yet revealed any new huge platform promises aimed at swaying young voters their way and getting them engaged in the political process. The one exception is the NDP addressing student debt.

The Liberals have spoken about allocating government funds to cover the costs of child care for children aged two and a half until kindergarten, and also prescription drugs for Ontarians over 65. Other than for young parents, those promises offer little incentive for young voters not already supporting the party to start doing so. Still, the Liberals have created a strong base of support among the young people who will go out and vote.

How many young residents will actually go out to the polls, however, is likely to be low. Leading up to the campaign season, I hope that all three parties will speak a lot about what they plan to do for young Ontarians. Without having the parties making direct appeals to the youth, young residents will likely lack any sort of incentive to go to the polls and vote. In that case, a turnout rate somewhere in the 30 per cent range is set to be repeated for those aged 18 to 24.

Ryan Rocca is a young journalist, born and raised in Mississauga. He has been reporting the news since he was eight years old. Rocca has reported for Citytv, Rogers TV, and 411Media.net. By reporting on youth issues and previously hosting a youth-oriented mayoral debate and an award-winning youth political conference entitled Mobilizing 22, Rocca has made efforts to ensure the concerns of youth are heard. Through this blog, entitled The Millennial Perspective, Rocca aims to continue to shine light on the concerns of young individuals who reside in Peel Region.