Should voting age be lowered?
Q. Hi! I am 14 and I wanna know if you think going to vote would be a good choice. Also, my social studies teacher had us debate whether 16-year-olds should have the right to vote. I was given the negative side. I think I did a good job arguing the point that 16-year-olds are too young and immature to vote – we won the debate, but now I’m not so sure. I pay attention to what’s happening in the country more than a lot of adults. I feel many people just don’t bother voting, or, if they do vote, they don’t take the time to be informed. I don’t know if it’s social media (now I feel old for saying that) or just the proliferation of misinformation, but it takes effort to decipher what’s true politically. I honestly believe now that I’d be a responsible voter at 16. What do you think?
Mary Jo’s Response: Thanks for asking my opinion. Let me first say that I’m impressed with your ability to debate in an assignment and win a point you fundamentally oppose. I’m even more impressed to know you reflected on the topic afterwards and evaluated your thoughts. Your social studies teacher would be pleased.
To start, my response to your first question is unequivocally yes. If you are a citizen of our nation you should vote. It is, to me, not only a good choice, but a civic responsibility.
As to 16-year-olds, I remember the discussions surrounding lowering the voting age from 21 to 18. The voting age in the United States changed to 18 on July 1, 1971, when the 26th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified. That single change added nearly 11 million young Americans to the electorate overnight. For most of American history, you had to be at least 21 to vote. That threshold traced back to English common law, which treated 21 as the age of full legal adulthood. I vividly recall the slogan “Old enough to fight, old enough to vote.” Military draft was dropped to the age of 18 in 1942, and the Vietnam War made this debate real to young people. My high school classmates were drafted to fight before they received the right to vote.
Lowering the age again, to 16, would require significant debate. Some adults do not perceive 16-year-olds as mature enough to make a wise choice. Legally, there are many benefits reached at 18, which is now our threshold for adulthood.
You raise an excellent point. Not all adults take voting seriously. I was raised to believe the right to vote was fundamental to our nation’s well-being. My parents took me to the polls as a child; I would not even consider missing an election. You are correct in that it takes effort to separate facts from untruths in today’s fast-paced, online world. AI complicates fact checking, since even videos/photos can be altered. Your awareness of these challenges doesn’t age you, in my opinion, it makes you more mature.
You asked my opinion. While I can see and understand both sides to this debate, I must confess to bias on behalf of 16-year-olds. I’ve been honored to interact with and teach adolescents for over five decades. I respect and enjoy teens a great deal. If the voting age was lowered, I’d suggest a return to civics classes in high school, as well as classes on fact-checking and social media. I vote to enhance our 16-year-olds’ awareness! Keep thinking!
Have a question? Send it to Dr. Mary Jo Podgurski’s email podmj@healthyteens.com.