The Voting Age

In the 1970s, the voting age was changed to 18. This was because of the many minors in the country serving in the army and giving their lives but still having no say in government. Today, the debate reoccurs. People want to change the voting age to 16, claiming that young voters are apathetic towards voting and since they have jobs, they too should be able to vote in elections. Is this a reasonable claim though?

At 16, the average person is usually still in high school with a couple of high school years to go. Because of this, they have yet to experience anything from the realities of the world. 16 year olds have just become qualified to get jobs, while 18 year olds can have up to 2 years of experience with even entry level work. Being 18 also qualifies you to serve in the army, the main reason the voting age was changed in the first place. At around this age, you are ready to graduate high school. Your level of maturity and intellect have stabilized to a high school degree. This is not the case for 16 year olds.

16 year olds are also most likely living with their parents. They rely on their parents' income for stuff, even though 80% of teenagers have some sort of income. They are looked after by parents and supported by them, and they are not very independent yet at this age. Most decision are made for them, meaning a 'double' vote for parents. Although it is true that the voter apathy rate for younger generations is higher, it is yet to be proven that letting students vote earlier would actually decrease voter apathy later on.

18 is the climax of a person's life, at least in terms of decisions and rights. 18 is around the age most students go live on their own or go to college where they are no longer told what to do by their parents. Because of this newfound independence, they are able to vote freely. Unless we change the high school graduation age to 16 and let them start fighting in the army, there is no validity in allowing students who do not yet understand the full realities of life to being voting 2 years earlier.

Works Cited

Craggs, Ryan. "Argentina Voting Age Lowered To 16." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 31 Oct. 2012. Web. 26 Mar. 2013. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/31/argentina-voting-age_n_2053644.html>.

Mason, Rowena. "Voting Age Could Be Lowered to 16 under Labour." The Telegraph. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2013. <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/labour/9707737/Voting-age-could-be-lowered-to-16-under-Labour.html>.

"Should the Voting Age Be Lowered to 16?" Theguardian. Theguardian, n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2013. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/poll/2012/jul/16/voting-age-lowered-16-poll>.