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Abstract:
This article analyses the reasons for higher voting participation among older people in Europe. Over
their lifetimes, citizens tend to habituate voting and comply with a growing subjective norm of
voting. Furthermore, the average voting participation of older people is influenced by their longer
duration of residence, the lack of a mobilising partner, worse physical health and less education,
although life experience replaces the function of formal education over a lifetime. Most of these
factors are founded on the very nature of human behaviour and the social context of our life course.
Thus, they arguably stand outside of the political process and will remain stable into the future.
