Lessons from US midterm elections: What young Africans can learn

The Democrats have turned the tide after two years of Republicans. They have taken the House of Representatives, with a larger than expected majority, and more interestingly, flipped the Senate, winning key battleground states like North Carolina and Ohio. More surprisingly, they have secured victories in traditionally Republican territory, including Texas, Iowa and Kansas.

The midterm election highlighted key lessons about democracy that Africans, especially the youth, can learn from. The election witnessed high voter turnout with the country’s youth actively participating.

Democracy is the rule of the people, for the people and by the people, and places ultimate power in the hands of the electorate. Change, therefore, can only be realised if citizens take the initiative to vote for the change they want. Citizens must avoid complacency, take the initiative, register and turn out to vote.

In Africa, young people are particularly an important voting bloc because of their large numbers. Their reluctance to take part in politics and exercise the right to vote is a huge threat to democracy.

In a number of African countries, the turnout among young people in elections has been significantly low. Africa’s youth have an obligation to register as voters so that they can participate in polls.

Reports reveal that young people across the United States overwhelmingly voted for Democratic candidates in the midterms. This was a dramatic shift from 2024, when the young voters were roughly split between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris. The strong support young Americans gave Democratic candidates highlights the power of young voters.

The youth make up a significant part of the population in a number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa, which means that they have the power to put in office leaders who care about their interests.

A youthful population that is largely marginalised, excluded from decision-making and deprived of basic needs and rights, justifies a new perspective on politics.

But the youth should also take a share of the blame for failing to mobilise themselves in a manner that insulates them from the bad politics that has left them vulnerable to unscrupulous politicians.

Focused leadership should re-engineer politics and economy to anchor the youth agenda in governance. And the youth have the power to put such a leadership in place.

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