The UK’s elections are “close to a tipping point” where they could lose legitimacy due to plummeting voter turnout, especially among renters and non-graduates, according to a new report by the influential Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).
The analysis found that the gap in turnout between those with and without university degrees grew to 11 percentage points in the 2024 general election – double the gap seen in 2019. Similarly, the turnout gap between homeowners and renters increased by nearly a quarter between 2017 and 2024, reaching 19 percentage points.
These findings suggest a growing disillusionment with politics among certain social groups, leading to increasingly unequal elections. Parth Patel, an associate director at IPPR, warned: “We are close to the tipping point at which elections begin to lose legitimacy because the majority do not take part. That should be ringing more alarm bells than it is.”
The report also highlighted persistent turnout inequality between top and bottom earners, as well as between working-class and middle-class voters. The 21-percentage-point gap between 18-24-year-olds and over-60s has remained largely unchanged since 2015.
Labour strategists are likely to be concerned by these figures, as the party’s 2024 election strategy was built around winning over non-graduate voters. Meanwhile, the rise of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party, which came second in 89 Labour-held seats, has drawn attention away from tackling the turnout crisis.
To address the issue, the IPPR called for “bold reforms” such as lowering the voting age to 16, implementing automatic voter registration, and introducing a £100,000 annual cap on political donations. The think tank also proposed a new “election day service” that would recruit poll workers from the population, similar to jury duty.
Other suggestions included moving polling day to a weekend or making it a public holiday, as well as scrapping the voter ID requirements introduced by the Conservatives. The IPPR also recommended enfranchising the 5 million long-term tax-paying residents who are not UK, Irish or Commonwealth citizens.
Ryan Swift, an IPPR research fellow and co-author of the report, said: “The widening turnout gaps between renters and homeowners, and graduates and non-graduates, highlight a glaring blind spot in tackling political inequality. To rebuild trust and strengthen democracy, we need bold reforms like votes at 16, automatic registration and fairer electoral rules.”
With the UK’s elections facing a crisis of legitimacy, political leaders and policymakers will be under pressure to address these pressing concerns and ensure a more inclusive and representative democratic process.
