Introduction

If participation in mainstream politics is taken as a hallmark of engagement with the democratic process, then evidence shows an increasing disenchantment with democracy in the UK. Indeed, the path of mainstream politics is one less travelled not only by the British people; it's a trend prevalent in mature democracies across the world. Increasingly, people are not voting, joining political parties or volunteering their help at election campaigns as ‘foot soldiers’. Disillusionment is more pronounced among certain groups, including young people. Muslim young people, like their counterparts in wider society, are sceptical about the effectiveness of mainstream politics and politicians. But, unlike their non-Muslim contemporaries, many young Muslims live in constituencies where the practice of biraderi, or kinship-based politics, is a feature of political life. The hierarchical and patriarchal structure of kin-based politics results in the effective disenfranchisement of young people and women. In turn, this creates a second layer of disillusionment for politically interested British Muslims. While the focus of this chapter is on the ways in which young British Muslims are disenfranchised from electoral politics, elsewhere I have shown how young Muslims are seeking out alternative forms of political engagement as an antidote to electoral exclusion (Akhtar, 2013). O’Toole, too, in this volume, shows some of the ways in which minority (including Muslim) young people are active in extra-parliamentary forms of political participation. The chapter begins with a discussion about some of the general concerns around declining participation in mainstream politics; this is followed by an examination of the more marked decline among certain demographics, in particular, young people and ethnic minorities. Next, British Muslim communities and the role of biraderi politics, especially the impact of biraderi on the political engagement of young British Muslims, are examined. The chapter draws on embedded ethnographic research, including informal interviews and participant observation with the Pakistani Muslim community in Birmingham over an extensive time frame (2005–14) for a project on British Muslims and political participation (Akhtar, 2013).

Decline in mainstream political participation

Participation in electoral and other mainstream forms of political engagement is in decline across many of the industrialised democracies. In the UK, this is in part due to a deep cynicism towards politicians and political front-runners. Politicians are the least trusted of all professions, the expenses scandal contributing to historic levels of mistrust in elected representatives.