The outcome of next year’s General Election is anybody’s guess. After decades of two-party politics, could coalition governments be here to stay? As the last election showed us, the “democratic majority” is becoming an increasingly nebulous entity. This time round, David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg are all embroiled in their own distinct battles. Meanwhile, UKIP and the Green Party provide growing threats, and a comedian is taking up the mantle of the revolutionary. But is anyone paying attention?   

Voter turnout at the last election was just 65%. It’s part of a long-term downward trend. Will that figure reach a new low in 2015, despite the anticipation surrounding the election run-up? According to columnist and author Owen Jones, it is resignation, not apathy, that’s plaguing the British public. “The problem is that there’s not much hope at the moment,” he says. “There’s a sense of general despair or defeatism, the idea that you might not like the way the world is, but it’s sort of inevitable. It’s as though injustice is like the weather: you can complain about it raining but there’s nothing you can do about it. That’s the problem for those of us who want genuine radical change, who want a different sort of society. People feel politics isn’t relevant to their daily lives.”

For Jones, a regular on the TV panel circuit and recognisable to many as the fresh face of modern socialism, the detachment of the public stems from the privilege at the heart of government itself. It only takes a glance at the people and policies of the main parties, he says, to see that democracy has become a system that is governed by and works for a wealthy elite, one that puts banks before the electorate. “Those that are rich know that democracy will always represent a potential challenge to their interests, he says. “That’s why it has to be safeguarded.” He characterises the current social order as “fundamentally bankrupt”, where the rich get richer and the working classes suffer the worst fall in living standards since the 1870s.

“Despite things being rigged in their favour, the interests of those with wealth and power can be challenged,” argues Jones. “I want to build support for that. I want to win people over. The question is how you give people enough hope.”

Jones harks back to the groups who fought to assert their rights, and ultimately helped shape the society we live in today. The sacrifices of democratic crusaders like the Chartists and Suffragettes, he says, should exist as a reminder that people who feel disenfranchised by government can effect change. Turning up to the ballot box is a start, but it’s not nearly enough: “We need grass-roots campaigners who can mobilise and who can fight for people’s rights by always trying to put a check on those in power,” says Jones. “You can only do that by democracy, because democracy gives everybody a say in the process of governing the country instead of just leaving it to an elite. Obviously some will always find ways of subverting democracy if they have wealth and power, but by improving the system and extending it, by involving people at a grass-roots level, you can challenge those interests.”