Youth voters seek refuge in the Australian Greens

But two years of policy failures and back-flips as well as unwanted leadership changes, had disenfranchised the youth vote. Unhappy with Labor and not entirely convinced by an Opposition leader they struggled to identify with, youth voters sought refuge in the Australian Greens.

The result was clear to see: A hung parliament with the first ever Greens member elected to the House of Representatives, and crucially, nine seats in the senate, allowing the Greens to hold the balance of power in the house of review.

No legislation will pass the current parliament without Greens approval and a vegetable-based ink stamp declaring it has been carbon offset.

The Greens now have a real chance to further both the issues they hold dear and the interests of the party. What remains to be seen is how their status as a major party - with well-earned polling numbers like theirs - might affect their policy outputs.

The Greens will need to strike a fine balance between policy activism and pragmatic politics. Holding up the system too much might be enough to bring about a double-dissolution trigger, and losing significantly from the senate seats they hold is more likely than winning another nine. But if they stray too far from their newly found youth base, then those voters might abandon the Greens at the next federal election.

Youth are acutely issues driven voters, and particularly issues of social policy: Climate change and immigration are perhaps the most public of these, but no less important are equality concerns like gay marriage, indigenous issues, and education.

Youth are essentially modern swing voters, but with a key difference. Whereas swing voters of previous generations broadly overlooked past policy mistakes, modern youth are benevolently vindictive. That is to say, they have shown a willingness to punish those in politics who do not represent their voice in parliament. Do well by youth and you will have their support. But discount their importance only at your own risk.

For political parties, there is a key lesson to be learnt, and one that could alter future elections. Strategists would do well to understand that the youth vote is not unimportant, and continued lurches to the right by both parties, in a misguided effort to appeal to their base, will only serve to push youth to seek representation elsewhere.

With youth making up almost 20 per cent of eligible electors in 2010, their support would more than swing future elections. If nothing else, winning the support of young voters guarantees a good showing to an astute candidate.

Youth see their vote as more than a Saturday chore. They see their ballot as a tool of democracy; a way to make their voice heard and express discontent with the traditional structure and established societal norms are increasingly unrepresentative of their growing role in public policy. A tool they are more than willing to use.