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Teenage student Assia Rezagui will be casting her very first ballot in next month’s presidential election. Having grown up in a family steeped in politics, she tells FRANCE 24 why voting is both a precious right and a civic duty.
Pollsters have warned that French youths may shun the April election in record numbers – but 19-year-old Assia Rezagui won’t be among them.
A native of Fréjus, in southeastern France, the law student has had a keen interest in politics since her early teens. She was already a card-carrying member of the Socialist Party aged 15. “I’ve always been immersed in politics,” she says. “My five siblings never missed a vote and I can’t imagine doing otherwise. For me it goes without saying.”
When her elder sister ran for office under the Socialist banner in the 2017 parliamentary elections, the young Rezagui naturally helped out. Since then, she has distanced herself from the ailing left-wing party, but her passion for politics has remained intact.
‘Form my own opinion in a non-partisan way’
In the run-up to the presidential election, Rezagui signed up for voluntary work with the association Cerfia, whose stated mission is to pass on verified information about the campaign and world affairs to French youths. Her job is to comb the press and promote content she deems of interest to high-school and university students, via the association’s Twitter account.
It’s a way to both foster democratic debate and inform her vote, she explains. “By reading and sharing content about the election, I get to know each candidate better and shape my own opinion in a non-partisan way.”
Having long…
Source : france24
