‘I can’t see a bright future’: under-30s on politics and voting in UK elections
-Some are optimistic about a change of government after the next general election, while others are frustrated at the choices

“我看不到光明的未来”：30岁以下的人对英国选举的政治和投票的看法
——一些人对下届大选后的政府更迭持乐观态度，而另一些人则对这些选择感到沮丧


（Thomas Phillips, from Salford, Greater Manchester, is primarily focused on ‘getting the Tories out’.）

（来自大曼彻斯特索尔福德的托马斯·菲利普斯主要致力于“把保守党赶出去”。）
新闻：

Joshua Holmes, 29, from Barton Hill, Bristol, went out to vote in the local elections on Thursday afternoon.

周四下午，来自布里斯托尔巴顿山的29岁的约书亚·霍姆斯出去参加地方选举投票。

“The polling station was pretty quiet,” he said. “I was probably the youngest person there, and the only person in my shared house that voted.”

“投票站相当安静，”他说。“我可能是那里最年轻的人，也是我们合租的房子里唯一一个投票的人。”

He had registered as a voter a little over a month ago, and had not been aware that an election was taking place this week until a couple of days ago.

他在一个多月前登记为选民，直到几天前才知道本周将举行选举。

“I had to be quite proactive to register to vote,” he said. “Nobody prompted me to do it, and two of my housemates said they’d have liked to vote, but weren’t registered.

他说：“我必须非常积极主动地登记投票。没有人鼓励我这么做，我的两个室友说他们想投票，但没有登记。
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“We had one leaflet from the Green party through the door last month, but that’s it. This is probably the poorest area in Bristol I’ve lived in and we haven’t received anything else about the election.”

“上个月我们收到了绿党的一张传单，但仅此而已。这可能是我在布里斯托尔住过的最贫穷的地区，我们还没有收到任何关于选举的消息。”

Holmes, who has a higher education diploma in computer science, has been unemployed for about 10 years, primarily, he said, because of poor mental health.

霍姆斯拥有计算机科学的高等教育文凭，他已经失业大约10年了，他说，主要是因为心理健康状况不佳。
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“I’m definitely excited for the general election,” he said. “I was a big Corbyn fan, and now I’m a big Starmer fan. Despite some of his U-turns, it feels like he will change a lot of things in this country for the better.”

“我对大选感到非常兴奋，”他说。“我曾经是科尔宾的忠实粉丝，现在我是斯塔默的忠实粉丝。尽管他有一些180度大转弯，但感觉他会让这个国家的很多事情变得更好。”

Holmes was among scores of people under 30 who told the Guardian whether they intended to vote in UK elections this year, and how they felt about voting generally.

霍姆斯是许多告诉《卫报》他们是否打算在今年的英国大选中投票，以及他们对投票的总体看法的30岁以下的人中的一员。
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While many young people who got in touch said they would definitely cast their ballots locally and nationally, many also said they were unimpressed with the political choices on offer, with a number saying they were unlikely to vote, undecided whether they would bother, or unsure whom to vote for.

虽然许多联系上的年轻人表示，他们肯定会在地方和全国参加投票，但许多人也表示，他们对提供的政治选择不感兴趣，一些人说他们不太可能投票，不知道是否会麻烦，或者不确定投票给谁。

Scores of people said they were frustrated by how similar Labour and the Conservatives seemed to be in their plans for the country, such as Alexandra, 25, who works in finance and lives in London.

许多人表示，他们对工党和保守党在国家规划上的相似之处感到沮丧，比如25岁的亚历山德拉，她在金融行业工作，住在伦敦。

“I never thought it would be a question as to whether I would vote or not,” she said.

她说：“我从没想过我会不会投票会成为一个问题。
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“However, I am so disillusioned and angry with our party leaders and MPs that I am now contemplating the effect my vote will actually have. I can’t really see a bright future for our country, economy and public services, no matter who gets in.”

“然而，我对我们政党的领导人和议员感到失望和愤怒，我现在正在考虑我的投票实际会产生什么影响。无论谁当选，我都看不到我们国家、经济和公共服务的光明未来。”

The one-bedroom flat Alexandra is renting with her partner costs £1,625 a month, plus bills. Despite having a healthy gross annual income and being able to save a bit each month towards a mortgage, she is actively contemplating moving to Canada or New Zealand.

亚历山德拉和她的伴侣租住的一居室公寓每月花费1625英镑，外加各种账单。尽管她的年收入相当可观，而且每个月还能省下一些钱来偿还抵押贷款，但她正在积极考虑搬到加拿大或新西兰。

“No matter how much people try to make a living here, it’s futile, there are so many roadblocks,” she said. “We can’t afford living costs or houses, nothing is done about climate change, we’re forced to use private healthcare if we want to see a doctor. Fifty per cent of my friends have moved abroad, and the rest are actively thinking about it.

“不管有多少人想在这里谋生，都是徒劳的，障碍太多了，”她说。“我们负担不起生活费用和住房，对气候变化什么也不做，如果我们想看医生，我们被迫使用私人医疗机构。我的朋友中有一半已经移居国外，其余的人正在积极考虑。

“I’m tending towards not voting. Even the Labour party is too detached from the concerns of young people, and nothing will change enough to have a real impact on our lives. We’re just not heard by the parties.”

“我倾向于不投票。即使是工党也太过脱离年轻人的关注，任何改变都不足以对我们的生活产生真正的影响。各方都没有听到我们的声音。”

A few respondents said they were not going to vote because of Keir Starmer’s stance on a ceasefire in Gaza.

一些受访者表示，他们不会投票是因为凯尔·斯塔摩在加沙停火问题上的立场。

Ethan, 28, an insurance representative from Newcastle, was one of many who bemoaned the electoral system for effectively forcing voters to choose between the two main parties.

28岁的伊森是纽卡斯尔的一名保险代表，他是许多人抱怨选举制度实际上迫使选民在两个主要政党之间做出选择的人之一。

“I’m not going to vote,” he said. “In the last few elections I have voted Lib Dem as I truly believed they would make the biggest difference. However, I’m no longer going to delude myself into thinking that voting anything but Labour or Conservative will actually affect anything.”

“我不会投票，”他说。“在过去的几次选举中，我一直投票给自由民主党，因为我真的相信他们会带来最大的改变。然而，我不会再欺骗自己，认为投票给工党或保守党以外的任何党派都会产生任何影响。”

Annie Wyatt, 28, who works in human resources and lives in Ipswich, said the effective two-party system was one of her concerns, too. But Wyatt is convinced her vote can make a difference, and she has voted in every local and national election that she has been eligible to.

28岁的安妮·怀亚特在人力资源部门工作，住在伊普斯维奇。她说，实际上的两党制也是她担心的问题之一。但怀亚特相信她的一票能带来改变，她在每一次有资格参加的地方和全国选举中都投了票。

“It’s not ideal that it’s a two-party race, regardless of how promising the other choices may be.

“两党竞争是不理想的，不管其他选择有多有希望。

“But in my mind, voting is a civic responsibility. Voter turnout in Ipswich was 65.6% in the last general election, and historically the area has switched between Labour and Conservative, so I definitely feel that every vote matters.”

“但在我看来，投票是一种公民责任。在上次大选中，伊普斯维奇的投票率为65.6%，从历史上看，该地区在工党和保守党之间摇摆不定，所以我绝对觉得每一张选票都很重要。”

Although she will vote for Labour, she said the party’s offering so far had not exactly swept her off her feet.

尽管她将投票给工党，但她表示，工党的提议到目前为止还没有完全让她倾心。

“They’re not as great as I’d like them to be, but what’s the alternative? One of the biggest concerns I have is the voting apathy within my social circles.

“它们并不像我希望的那么好，但还有什么别的选择呢？我最大的担忧之一是我社交圈里的投票冷漠。

“I have two siblings of voting age who have never voted. I tell them all the time to sign up for a postal ballot, but then they aren’t sure who to vote for because they find it intimidating to engage and keep up with political news.”

“我有两个兄弟姐妹到了投票年龄，但他们从来没有投过票。我总是告诉他们报名参加邮寄投票，但他们不确定该投谁的票，因为他们觉得参与和关注政治新闻是很恐怖的事。”

For 22-year-old Thomas Phillips, a teaching assistant from Salford, there is no question that he will vote, but he feels fairly convinced that few things will change for the better.

22岁的托马斯·菲利普斯是索尔福德的一名助教，毫无疑问他会投票，但他相当确信，情况不会好转。

“I am planning to vote in both the local elections and the upcoming general election, but I don’t believe it makes a difference,” he said.

他说：“我计划在地方选举和即将举行的议会选举中都投票，但我不认为这有什么不同。”

“I’m concerned with pretty much everything in this country at the minute.

“我现在关心这个国家的几乎每一件事。

“It seems that Labour are hellbent on disappointing, but it can’t be worse than the current lot. The cancellation of HS2 to Manchester was the perfect metaphor for the lack of ambition the UK has for itself.

“工党似乎一心想让人失望，但它不会比目前的情况更糟。取消通往曼彻斯特的HS2计划是英国缺乏雄心的完美隐喻。

“I won’t be able to afford to have kids until my mid- to late 30s, and worry if I will be priced out of Manchester as it is getting increasingly more expensive.”

“我要到35岁左右才能有能力生孩子，而且我担心曼彻斯特的房价会越来越贵，我是否会被赶出这里。”
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He hopes that Labour will prioritise building more social housing in central locations, tackling the climate crisis and saving the NHS.

他希望工党能优先考虑在中心地区建造更多的社会住房，解决气候危机，拯救国民健康保险制度。
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“I’d also like Labour to nationalise the utility companies and national rail, do HS2, and move closer to Europe again, but I’m not expecting much. It’s more about getting the Tories out than getting Labour in.”

“我还希望工党将公用事业公司和国家铁路国有化，建设HS2，并再次靠近欧洲，但我不抱太多期望。更重要的是把保守党赶出去，而不是让工党上台。”

A 27-year-old software engineer from London who wanted to stay anonymous said: “I’m registered, but will only vote if I have time on the day.

一位不愿透露姓名的27岁伦敦软件工程师说：“我已经注册了，但我只会在当天有时间的时候投票。

“I don’t feel looked at or represented in their policies. I feel like our government – whether it’s Labour or Tory – tends to [continue] doing the same thing and staying the course. As a country we’re not forward thinking.”

“我觉得他们的政策没有关注我，也没有代表我。我觉得我们的政府——无论是工党还是保守党——都倾向于（继续）做同样的事情，并坚持到底。作为一个国家，我们没有前瞻性思维。”

She added: “Until our government starts really thinking about how to improve our quality of life, perhaps by looking at what other countries do, I’ll feel like voting won’t do anything.”

她补充说：“除非我们的政府开始真正考虑如何改善我们的生活质量，也许可以借鉴其他国家的做法，否则我觉得投票不会有任何作用。”
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Kat, 21, from Kent, who is about to complete her English literature degree and is looking for a full-time graduate job, feels a bit more hopeful.

21岁的凯特来自肯特郡，即将完成她的英国文学学位，正在寻找一份全职的研究生工作，她觉得更有希望了。

“I’m registered to vote and I’m planning to vote Labour.

““我已经登记投票了，我打算投工党的票。

“I have the maximum student maintenance loan, my family home is rented, my father relies on Pip payments since a brain injury last year caused him to have a life-changing disability.

“我有最高额度的学生维持贷款，家里的房子是租来的，我父亲自从去年脑损伤导致终身残疾后，就一直依赖Pip的资助。

“I don’t feel that Labour policies go far enough, such as on climate change. A lot of them have been watered down, but I understand why they have done that. For me, and all of my social circle, voting Conservative is unconscionable.

“我觉得工党的政策不够深入，比如在气候变化方面。它们中的许多都被淡化了，但我理解他们为什么这样做。对我和我所有的社交圈来说，投票给保守党是不合情理的。

“Many of us have very small aspirations: earning enough money to not worry about budgeting a food shop, being able to rent without it crippling our finances, not having to choose between heat and electricity.

“我们中的许多人都有非常小的愿望：赚到足够的钱，不用担心食品商店的预算，能够租房而不会影响我们的经济状况，不必在暖气和用电之间做出选择。

“I really do hope Labour will be able to drag us out of this untenable pit.”

“我真的希望工党能够把我们从这个无法立足的坑里拖出来。”