Effects of National Voting Experience During High School on Political Participation: Evidence From South Korea

ABSTRACT Objectives This study investigates whether voting during high school influences adolescents' long‐term political engagement. Methods South Korea's 2020 electoral reform created a natural experiment by granting voting eligibility to only some high school seniors based solely on birthdate. Exploiting this exogenous division within a single cohort, we estimate the causal effects of adolescent voting using an Instrumental Variable (IV) approach. Results Students who voted during high school exhibited higher political interest, greater consumption of political news, and higher political knowledge in adulthood compared to those who did not vote. However, early voting showed no significant effects on later electoral turnout or more active forms of political participation, indicating that a single voting experience increases political awareness but does not translate into sustained participatory behavior. Conclusions Adolescent voting enhances foundational aspects of political engagement but is insufficient to foster habitual political participation. These results suggest that deeper, more active involvement requires continued opportunities beyond one early voting experience. By leveraging a rare natural experiment in a non‐Western context, this study highlights the multifaceted and long‐term impacts of early enfranchisement on democratic citizenship.