First-time voters in the 2025 Chamber of Deputies elections confirmed long-standing findings about Generation Z as a digitally socialized, issue-oriented group with low party loyalty. Their key concerns were the cost of living, housing affordability, education, and economic prospects, and they follow politics primarily through social media and online environments. Although these priorities featured prominently in party campaigns, the election results showed that thematic alignment alone was not enough to secure young voters’ support. A large share of first-time voters also did not turn out to vote at all. This is not simple apathy; it reflects a different understanding of politics and elections as a tool that only makes sense to young people when they perceive it as directly relevant to their lives.

Key takeaways:

• Issues more important than parties: First-time voters primarily responded to issues concerning housing, the cost of living, education, and their economic future. They perceive politics through the lens of concrete problems rather than traditional party divisions.
• Digital environment and a different relationship to politics: Young people follow politics primarily on social media and online platforms, participate in petitions or public debates, but have a weaker connection to the act of voting itself and to institutional politics.
• Low mobilization and limited electoral impact: Although the campaigns of certain parties aligned thematically with the priorities of young people, lower turnout among first-time voters and their weak party identification meant their overall influence on the election results remained very limited.

Analysis – Jan Rovenský

The analysis is in PDF under the link below.