Millions of people will head to polling stations today to cast their vote in the 2015 UK General Election.

A large portion of each party’s election campaign has focused on the interest of young people, in a bid to win their favour. However, young people may not have as big an impact on the outcome of the UK General Election as some might think.

According to UK market research company Ipsos MORI, only 44% of 18-24 year-olds voted in the 2010 election. This can be put down to a number of factors; the rise in tuition fees, uncertainty over house prices and graduate employment.

However, most telling is the YouGov ‘British Future’ survey, which reveals that 96% of young people don’t think that politicians pay attention to their needs.

Harry Amos, 20, studies Politics, Philosophy and Economics at the University of Warwick, and believes he understands why this happened. He says that “policies favoured by young people typically get ignored; this means that our turnout figures at general elections are appalling when compared with older generations, particularly the over-65s.”

Mr Amos says that the low turnout from young people is also partly due to Russell Brand’s influence on their opinions; he calls the comedian’s apathetic political stance “ridiculous.”

Russell Brand is well-known for his disliking of the current political situation. In an article he wrote for the New Statesman, Brand states that “I will never vote and I don’t think you should, either.”

Political parties themselves have been attempting to appeal to younger voters with their policies. For example, Labour Party leader Ed Miliband has stated that, if made Prime Minister, he will cut tuition fees by a third, down to £6,000 a year, as well as the pledge of lowering the voting age to 16.

Similarly, the Conservative Party claims in their election manifesto that, despite keeping the £9,000 per year tuition fees, “we will maintain our universities’ reputation for world-class research and academic excellence.”

But what else could have been done to persuade young people to vote?

Another option is to make voting in general elections a legal requirement. This has been in place in Australia since 1924; failing to vote without good reason (e.g. illness or religious grounds) can lead to being given a fine of up to $170. This means that voter turnout is significantly higher than in the UK; according to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), in the 2013 elections, 93.23% of the electorate had their vote counted. In turn, this means that people have a greater incentive to make themselves politically aware.

However, it would seem that one of the most effective ways of involving young people in politics is, as mentioned in the YouGov survey, to show an interest in their thoughts and ideas.

Young people will definitely have a huge impact in today’s election, with a larger voice than ever before. Whether their voices will be heard, though, remains uncertain.