Britain is lowering its voting age to 16. Is it time for the United States to do the same? Should the U.S.
voting age be lowered to 16? Learn the pros and cons of the debate. Arguments Supporting Lowering the Voting Age to 16 Advocates for lowering the voting age emphasize increased civic engagement and amplification of youth voices. Granting 16-year-olds the right to vote could foster earlier participation in democratic processes, allowing them to influence decisions affecting their lives.
Lowering the voting age to 16 would do the same. These lowering the voting age to 16 pros and cons must balance the rights of the individual with the needs of each nation. Those who have lowered the voting age have found much success with its results.
The U.S. would likely experience the same outcome, despite the risks involved. Reasons to lower the voting age include the following: Extending voting rights to 16- and 17-year-olds is consistent with the fact that turning 16 has special significance in our culture.
At age 16, citizens can drive, pay taxes, and for the first time work without any restriction on hours. By: Anya Khera Since 2023, I have been involved with Vote16, a movement focused on extending voting rights to 16- and 17-year-old eligible voters at the municipal level (Vote16USA). A teenager myself, I connected with this work because I believe strongly in youth political participation, as we are the citizens who will ultimately inherit and lead our societies.
Vote16 supports youth citizenry. In 2013, when Takoma Park, Maryland, lowered its voting age to 16, registered voters under 18 had a turnout rate four times higher than voters over 18. And again in Hyattsville, Maryland (the second place in the U.S.
to lower the voting age to 16), registered 16. The survey presented a hypothetical public meeting about the idea, where 16- and 17-year-olds spoke out for lowering the voting age. Here is the message that resonated the most with survey respondents: Mary Clark, who is 16 years old, spoke about her experience with politics.
In the 20th century, ages for voting and political participation were progressively lowered as the franchise was extended to women, the illiterate, and other groups. A first wave of countries lowered the voting age to 16 in the second half of that century in Latin America, and a second wave started in the early 2000s, mainly in European countries. The Amendment effectively lowered the minimum voting age to 18 for all federal, state, and local elections.
(Although most states maintained a minimum voting age of 21 immediately prior to the Amendment's ratification, nine states had already lowered their voting ages to 18, 19, or 20.).