In Europe, some politicians are in favor of lowering the voting age to 16. The idea behind this movement is that these teenagers already have responsibilities in the society and that giving them the right to vote in elections would improve civic responsibility.
How would this proposal best improve civic involvement in Europe?
Answers
Explanation:
Around the world, almost every country bars people under 18 from voting. The reasons vary — they won’t be informed enough, they don’t pay taxes yet, they can’t serve in the military yet, they tend too liberal, they tend too rebellious. Yet the rule persists, even though many 16- and 17-year-olds do pay taxes, even in the face of a generation of passionate, smart, and informed teenage activists, and even as it becomes obvious that our current political system is failing our children.
In the last year, there’ve been encouraging signs that we might rethink this. Democratic candidate Andrew Yang argued for a voting age of 16, and a bill proposing a voting age of 16 died in the US House in March 2019 with a majority of Democratic representatives supporting it.
In my state of California on November 3rd, voters will consider whether to let 17-year-olds vote in the primary if they will be old enough to vote in the general election, which 18 other states and Washington, DC, already allow.
Well, let’s do them one better: The United States should consider eradicating the voting age entirely and letting every American citizen who can successfully fill out a ballot be counted in our local, state, and national elections (and yes, this goes for felons too).