As temporary residents of the UK, why should international students care about UK politics? Students, and young people in general, are often cast as apathetic and disengaged from politics. Fortunately, if my experience of being president of the students’ union at the University of Sussex is anything to go by, the idea that international students don’t engage with UK politics is wholly misplaced.
The biggest barrier is not apathy, but raising awareness that many international students will be able to vote in our upcoming general election – and could have a strong influence on the key issues that affect them.
Ree Haggarty, from Bite The Ballot, a not-for-profit organisation which seeks to empower young voters, describes the system of who can and can’t vote as confusing. He says that in the UK, most international students aren’t aware of their voting rights and the fact that they can participate in national elections.
In national elections, students from the Commonwealth, the Republic of Ireland, Cyprus, and Malta have the same voting rights as UK citizens. In local elections, international students from any country in the EU can vote.
Shreya Paudel, the NUS’s international students officer, says Commonwealth students’ ability to vote in the general election is “a golden opportunity to be heard and bring international students’ concerns into mainstream UK politics.” Paudel implores students who are eligible to vote use it to encourage those in the election who support of international students.
On the University of Sussex campus, students from over 90 countries voted in the recent students’ union elections. 45% of voters were from countries other than the UK, reflecting the university’s international profile – with students from China the second most prolific voters overall.
Not only do international students at Sussex vote, but they also stand for election – such as Shikhar Shrivastava, the elected community engagement officer at the students’ union. Shikhar, an Indian national, works to foster good relations between students and the local community, and is also a member of the students’ union executive committee, representing the interests of 14,000 Sussex students.
In the UK elections, changes in voter registration law have made it harder for all students to vote: those living in university halls are no longer automatically added to the electoral roll, and those who move house frequently can also be caught out. For international students, not having a national insurance number creates further difficulties.
Despite the obstacles they might face in registering to vote, I’m expecting many Sussex students – international and UK-based – to make it to the polling booth in May’s general election, proving their commitment to the democratic process. I’m leading our students’ union campaign to register students ahead of the election, so that politicians won’t ignore students’ voices.
Find out more about the students’ union at the University of Sussex
