Voting will open next week for the elections to the Scottish Youth Parliament, with three candidates stepping forward to represent young people in Shetland.
Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament, known as MSYPs, are aged between 14 and 25, and elected every two years with two MSYPs each for every Scottish Parliament constituency.
Across Scotland, young people aged 12 to 25 will be eligible to vote between Monday 6th November and Sunday 19th November. Young people in Shetland will be able to cast their votes online using their Young Scot National Entitlement Card.
The Shetland Islands constituency will be contested by three candidates:
- Brandon Kennedy
- Joe Smith
- Bertie Summers
Candidate profiles are on this link
The results of voting will be declared on Monday 20th November, World Children’s Day, and newly elected MSYPs will then undertake training to help them carry out their role and to decide on future campaigns.
Current MSYPs Michaela Christie and John Fraser were elected unopposed in November 2021 and their two-year term will come to an end when the new MSYPs are elected.
Mollie McGoran MSYP, Chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament said: “This is an exciting opportunity for young people across Scotland to make their voice heard by voting to elect their new MSYPs who will represent them for the next two years. We’d strongly encourage everyone aged 12 to 25 to go online, find out who is standing in their community, read about what the candidates stand for and then cast their vote. I want to thank all of the candidates across the country who have dedicated their time so far to register for the elections and receive training – I wish them all the best with their campaigning!”
Andrea Manson, Convener of Shetland Islands Council said: “I’m pleased to see three young people standing in this Scottish Youth Parliament election in Shetland and I’d encourage everyone who can vote to make sure they use their vote. The Council is keen to involve and support young people in our decision-making and our current and previous MSYPs have worked hard to raise awareness of issues that matter to young people in Shetland.”
The Scottish Youth Parliament is the democratically elected voice of Scotland’s young people and is a charity registered in Scotland (No: SC032662). SYP is grounded in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, particularly Article 12, which lays out young people’s right to be listened to on the issues that affect them, and for their views to be heard.