- Question
- Should the voting age be 16?
- Position1 of 3›
- Yes, the age should be lowered
Lowering the voting age increases voter turnout and instills habits for young voters.
The argument
The argument for lowering the voting age begins with a problem that is generally acknowledged across the debate: turnout at elections is often lacking. Where this argument differs is in the remedy it draws from that observation. If too few people are voting, one direct response is to increase the pool of people entitled to vote, and extending the franchise to sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds does exactly that. More eligible voters means more votes cast, and a result drawn from a larger share of the population is a more accurate reflection of what that population thinks. The second and more substantial claim concerns what the change would do over time. Voting is treated here as a habit rather than a one-off act, and habits are formed early. Introducing the ability to vote at a younger age instils a sense of responsibility in young voters at the point when their relationship to public life is still being established — before the assumption that elections are someone else's business has had a chance to settle. A person who votes at sixteen is being brought into the political process while the expectations that govern adult behaviour are still forming. The consequence proponents anticipate is cumulative. Those voters are likely to continue voting, which raises the number of active voters in later years and produces a higher percentage of the population participating in elections and in other matters affecting society as a whole. The reform therefore pays twice: an immediate increase in turnout, and a longer-term increase as each cohort carries the habit forward. Because politics should be incorporated as early as possible for both reasons, this argument concludes, the voting age should be lowered to sixteen.
Context
The overall turnout of voters is a huge issue for many elections. In America's last presidential election, for instance, only 58.1% of the voting population cast their ballot. By incorporating young people, we can increase voter turnout and instill voting skills that will continue into the rest of their lives.
Premises
Counter-arguments
How do we know that these young people would even turn up to vote? The ratio of people who vote may just become smaller, and the number of votes wasted would increase. Additionally, we know that these teens are not as capable of getting to polls as their fellow voters. There is no guarantee.