This week saw the rise of the Milifandom – an online community, made up mostly of teenage girls, who obsess about the leader of the opposition as if he were a member of One Direction.
There are those in the milifandom, those who find the milifandom funny, and those who wonder how the hell ed miliband has a fandom
this all started out as a joke but now i think i legitimately fancy ed miliband
After BuzzFeed News uncovered the phenomenon, #Milifandom started trending on Twitter, and the movement gained thousands of supporters overnight.
But some observers were not about to start taking teenage girls seriously when it comes to politics.
This is the best argument yet for not giving the vote to 16-year-olds #milifandom http://t.co/6vLyp12v2W
So BuzzFeed News decided to ask some members of the Milifandom about their political opinions. Here's what they told us.
(Fair warning: They love Labour. So obviously they're not a representative sample of teens. Only of Milifans.)
1. Seventeen-year-old Chloe tweets as @rockbandharry and has almost 11,000 followers. If she could ask Ed Miliband anything, it would be about how he plans to make apprenticeships financially feasible for young people.
If she had time for a second, silly question, it would be:
And if there were time for a third, it would be:
2. Nineteen-year-old Jessica, who is busy revising for her A-levels, said: "I haven't seen as much focus on the younger generation [from the Conservatives] as I have with Labour or the Lib Dems."
3. Chlo, 17, has missed being able to vote in this election by two months, but she still wants to be sure that politicians are paying attention to young voters.
4. Alistair, 19, feels that young voters have been forgotten in this election, and thinks that giving 16- and 17-year-olds the vote would be a "good start" in boosting their interest in politics.
He also gave his take on the rise of the Milifandom:
I think the reason Milifandom has sprung up is because we can relate in some way to what Ed's been through. Judgement on looks and image problems are things that all teenagers have to deal with in some shape or form.
In addition, all the so-called gaffes that Tory papers try to attack Ed with just reinforce the fact that Ed is a normal, down-to-earth guy. We like bacon sandwiches. We like Wallace and Gromit. We like a bit of awkwardness. What we don't like are politicians who ignore us and pander to the OAP vote. We aren't stupid. Although we're not as vocal, we do have brains and we can tell when someone's talking bullshit (I'm looking at you, David Cameron).
5. Sophie – who turns 17 next week – would love to ask Ed Miliband questions on all manner of topics.
She also told us that Ed has inspired her to want to someday become prime minister.
I think Ed is fantastic man, I would love to be like him. He inspires me to want to become PM one day. Another thing is, could he come to Cornwall, as 1) I love him and 2) there seems to be a lot of Liberal Democrats here.
7. Seventeen-year-old Twitter user @cmgirlwhowaited is worried about how the housing crisis will affect her when she leaves home.
She also took issue with the coalition's record on education, particularly the new national curriculum's focus on "the three Rs".
The demand on the 'three R's' seems like just a whole lot more pressure and stress put on those who don't meet the standards, and as a sister of young children not yet fully in the education system – and knowing how much pressure I feel from the government to pass certain standards – I don't think this should be put into such young children's minds. Surely there are better ways to get around what the problem must be.
8. Natasha, who is only 13, thinks David Cameron should pay closer attention to young voters and appreciates that Ed wants to lower the voting age.
She also shared this with us.
@hcjewell as I can't draw for the life of me I have created this wonderful masterpiece
9. Seventeen-year-old Twitter user Amy (@cornflakeharry) had a lot to say about the voting age too.
She thinks it "LITERALLY MAKES NO SENSE" that 16- and 17-year-olds can't vote.
And she also likes that Ed's a feminist.
10. Jen, 18, likes the promise in Labour's LGBT manifesto to strengthen hate crime laws.
11. Twenty-year-old university student Sophie Nazemi showed us her one-of-a-kind Ed Mili-bag.
The issue that matters most to Sophie is the future of the NHS:
The NHS is the most important issue for me, so my question for Cameron would be that – if he did win and the economy does not grow as predicted – where would he find the £8 billion he has committed to spending on the NHS as the policies they laid out in their manifesto (spending cuts and no higher taxes) makes it unclear as to where the money will come from.
12. Twitter user @oneoneoneone just wanted to share this.
@hcjewell @BuzzFeedUK Yes! Here is a painting I did of Ed & David on a bus with a rubiks cube & a fish! #milifandom
And also this.
@hcjewell @BuzzFeedUK Also, here's one I did of Ed hanging out with a seal. #milifandom
As Abby, the Milifandom's 17-year-old leader, reminded her followers:
I hope the #milifandom campaign has shown that young people ARE NOT apathetic to politics. We deserve our say.
Add your own ideas, questions for politicians, and fan art below!
