From Rome to Budapest via Paris: vote Gen Z

In France, the youth vote is often cited as evidence of a turn to the right, but the data tell a more nuanced story. In the 2022 presidential elections, according to Ipsos exit polls, Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National gathered 26% of the vote among 18-24 year-olds and 25% among 25-34 year-olds, a share only slightly higher than the national average (23.6%) and lower than that recorded in the 35-59 age group. In the second round, Le Pen was strongest among 25-34 year-olds (49%) and especially among 50-59 year-olds (51%), while among the youngest prevailed Emmanuel Macron.

At the same time, the most relevant fact is the success of the radical left: Jean-Luc Mélenchon was the candidate most voted for by young people in the first round, with 31% among 18-24 year olds and 34% among 25-34 year olds. The growth of the far right among young people is thus real in the long run, but does not make them the main engine of its rise. Also weighing on this is the high abstention rate among young people, especially in the legislative elections, which reduces the electoral impact of under-30 preferences.

In Ireland, the last presidential election showed a peculiar phenomenon: a record number of void ballots (almost 13%), driven by a social campaign that mobilised mainly young men. An exit poll found that 68% of those who cancelled their vote would have chosen a conservative candidate who was excluded from the competition.

However, looking at overall voting intentions, the picture changes dramatically. In the pre-election polls, 83% of voters aged 18-34 supported the candidate of the left-wing coalition Catherine Connolly. Party voting also confirms the progressive prevalence: Sinn Féin and Social Democrats are clearly first among young people, while the more conservative formations remain marginal. Rather than a turn to the right, a gender divide and a strong protest component emerge.

In Croatia, the youth vote appears more balanced and less clearly progressive. According to an Ipsos poll following the parliamentary elections in April 2024, the most voted party among 18-29 year olds was Možemo!, a green-left formation, with 21.7 per cent. However, if one adds up the support for the main centre-right and right-wing parties (HDZ, DP and MOST), the majority of youth votes are on the conservative side.

The gender factor is decisive: the right-wing parties have a predominantly male base, while Možemo! and the Social Democrats are mainly supported by voters. Here too, rather than a 'conservative generation', an internal polarisation emerges.

In Greece, young people express a deep dissatisfaction with the functioning of democracy, but without translating it into a massively right-wing vote. A national survey by the Eteron institute shows that 17-34 year olds judge the democratic quality of the country to be very low, but call for more participation, more listening and a renewal of the political system.

In the 2023 elections, the conservative New Democracy party obtained lower percentages among young people than the national average (28-29%), while the left-wing and anti-establishment forces - Syriza, Pasok, KKE, Mera25 - were overrepresented. In 2024, New Democracy lost further ground among the under-35s, overtaken by Syriza. The Greek youth vote thus appears critical and fragmented, but not structurally oriented to the right.

The Bulgarian case represents one of the clearest exceptions. In the parliamentary elections of October 2024, more than half of the voters aged between 18 and 29 voted for populist or newly formed nationalist parties. The leading party among young people was Mech (Sword), followed by other anti-system and nationalist forces.

According to analysts, this is less an ideological conversion to conservatism and more a protest vote against the traditional parties, in a country marked by chronic political instability and low participation. Young people remain the least mobilised electorate and most inclined to experiment with new political offers.

In the Czech Republic, the younger generation continues to be more liberal, pro-European and cosmopolitan than the older generation. In the last parliamentary elections, liberal parties and the liberal left performed above average among 18-29 year olds, while the extreme right remains under-represented.

The only exception is a new radical right-wing party, supported almost exclusively by young men. Here again, the central fact is not an overall conservative turn, but an increasing gender polarisation.

In Austria, young people show a combination of apparently contradictory values: concern for the environment and openness to migration, but also a strong demand for security and stability. In the 2024 elections, the Neos Liberals performed above average among young people, while the ÖVP remains strong especially among older voters.

The Freedom Party (FPÖ) is particularly strong among men under the age of 44, but without a clear over-representation of youth compared to other age groups. Scholars speak of a 'synthesis of values' rather than a clear ideological shift.

In Hungary, the central fact is the erosion of youth consensus for Fidesz, in power for over fifteen years. Polls show that the under-40s are the main reservoir of consensus for the new Tisza party, born as a cross-party alternative to the Orbán government.

Self-identification as liberal or pro-European is growing among young people, especially among women and those with a higher level of education. More than a shift to the left or right, a demand for change and alternation emerges in a political system perceived as blocked.

*This article is part of the European collaborative journalism project "Pulse" and was contributed by Silvia Martelli (Il Sole 24 Ore), Alicia Alamillos (El Confidencial, Spain), Conor O'Carroll (The Journal Investigates, Ireland), Marina Kelava (H-Alter.org, Croatia), Adrian Burtin (Voxeurop, France), Lena Kyriakidi (EfSyn - Efimerida ton Syntakton, Greece), Krasen Nikolov (Mediapool, Bulgaria), Petr Jedlička (Deník Referendum, Czech Republic), Kim Son Hoang (Der Standard / ORF, Austria) and Boróka Parászka (HVG, Hungary).