Editing Voting age (section)

==Debate on lowering the voting age==
{{See also|Youth suffrage|Suffrage}}

[[File:NYRA Berkeley voting age protest.jpg|thumb|right|Demonstration in favor of lowering the voting age by members of [[National Youth Rights Association|NYRA]] [[Berkeley, California]] (2004)]]
Around 2000, a number of countries began to consider whether the voting age ought to be reduced further, with arguments most often being made in favor of a reduction to 16. In Brazil, the age was lowered to 16 in the 1988 Constitution, while the lower voting age took effect for the first time in the 1989 Presidential Election. The earliest moves in Europe came during the 1990s, when the voting age for [[municipal elections]] in some [[States of Germany]] was lowered to 16. [[Lower Saxony]] was the first state to make such a reduction, in 1995, and four other states did likewise.<ref name="16 locals"/>

In 2007, Austria became the first country to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in national elections, with the expanded franchise first being consummated in the [[2009 European Parliament election]]. A study of young voters' behavior on that occasion showed them to be as capable as older voters to articulate their beliefs and to make voting decisions appropriate for their preferences. Their knowledge of the political process was only insignificantly lower than in older cohorts, while trust in democracy and willingness to participate in the process were markedly higher.<ref name="wag">{{cite journal |last1=Wagner |first1=Markus |last2=Johann |first2=David |last3=Kritzinger |first3=Sylvia |title=Voting at 16: Turnout and the quality of vote choice |journal=Electoral Studies |date=May 2012 |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=372–383 |doi=10.1016/j.electstud.2012.01.007 |pmid=24850994 |language=English |pmc=4020373}}</ref> Additionally, there was evidence found for the first time of a voting boost among young people age 16–25 in Austria.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Zeglovits |first=Eva |date=2014 |title=Are People More Inclined to Vote at 16 than at 18? Evidence for the First-Time Voting Boost Among 16- to 25-Year-Olds in Austria |journal=Journal of Elections|volume=24 |issue=3 |pages=351–361 |doi=10.1080/17457289.2013.872652 |pmid=27226806 |pmc=4864896 |s2cid=44707975}}</ref>

During the 2000s several proposals for a reduced voting age were put forward in [[U.S. states]], including [[California]], [[Florida]] and [[Alaska]],<ref>[http://youthrights.org/votestatus.php Worldwide Efforts to Lower the Voting Age], National Youth Rights Association</ref> but none were successful. In Oregon, Senate Joint Resolution 22 has been introduced to reduce the voting age from 18 to 16.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/2019R1/Downloads/MeasureDocument/SJR22/Introduced|title=Oregon Senate Joint Resolution 22|access-date=20 February 2019|archive-date=21 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221000424/https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/2019R1/Downloads/MeasureDocument/SJR22/Introduced|url-status=dead}}</ref> A national reduction was proposed in 2005 in [[Canada]]<ref name="vote16.ca/2007">[[Parliament of Canada]], Bill C-261 (2005); [http://vote16.ca/en/index.htm Vote16, Canada] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070801045625/http://vote16.ca/en/index.htm |date=1 August 2007}}</ref> and in the [[Australia]]n state of [[New South Wales]],<ref>[[Parliament of New South Wales]], Parliamentary Electorates and Elections Amendment (Voting Age) Bill (2005); [[Hansard]], 14 September 2005, [http://parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/PARLMENT/hansArt.nsf/V3Key/LC20050914041 p. 17686] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929125157/http://parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/PARLMENT/hansArt.nsf/V3Key/LC20050914041 |date=29 September 2007 }}.</ref> but these proposals were not adopted. In May 2009, Danish Member of Parliament [[Mogens Jensen (politician)|Mogens Jensen]] presented an initiative to the [[Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe]] in [[Strasbourg]] to lower the voting age in Europe to 16.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://assembly.coe.int/Documents/WorkingDocs/Doc09/EDOC11895.pdf|title=edoc11895|access-date=6 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090527175929/http://assembly.coe.int/Documents/WorkingDocs/Doc09/EDOC11895.pdf|archive-date=27 May 2009}}</ref>

Demands to reduce the voting age to 16 years were again brought forward by activists of the [[school strike for climate]] movement in several countries (including Germany and the UK).<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Stern (magazine)|Stern]] |url=https://www.stern.de/politik/deutschland/freitag-zur-demo--so-denken-die-jugendlichen-von--fridays-for-future--8555674.html |title=Ragna, Linus, Ronja und Florian: Sie schwänzen den Unterricht, um die Welt zu retten |language=de |date=30 January 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/climate-change-protest-strike-global-warming-children-greta-thunberg-a8779221.html |title=The grown-ups have failed miserably on climate change |date=14 February 2019}}</ref>

=== Australia ===
After Premier [[Don Dunstan]] introduced the Age of Majority (Reduction) Bill in October 1970, the voting age in South Australia was lowered from 21 to 18 in 1973.

On 21 October 2019, [[Australian Greens|Greens]] MP [[Adam Bandt]] introduced a bill in the House of Representatives to lower the voting age to 16.<ref>{{cite web |title=Momentum grows for lowering voting age as Greens - local and national - fight for reform |url=https://greens.org.au/act/news/momentum-grows-lowering-voting-age-greens-local-and-national-fight-reform |website=The Australian Greens |date=21 October 2019 |access-date=21 October 2019}}</ref>

A report suggesting that consideration be given to reducing the voting age to 16 in the [[Australian Capital Territory]] in [[Canberra]], Australia was tabled in the [[Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly|territorial legislature]] on 26 September 2007 and defeated.<ref>{{cite news|title=ACT to consider lowering voting age|publisher=[[ABC News (Australia)]]|date=26 September 2007|url=http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/26/2043628.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071206134008/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/26/2043628.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 December 2007}}</ref>

In 2015, federal Opposition Leader [[Bill Shorten]] said that the voting age should be lowered to 16.<ref name="abc.net.au">ABC News, 31 October 2015, [http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-31/shorten-calls-for-voting-age-to-be-lowered-to-16/6901464 Bill Shorten calls for voting age to be lowered to 16]</ref>

=== Austria ===
In 2007, Austria became the first member of the [[European Union]] to adopt a voting age of 16 for most purposes.<ref name="Austria 4"/><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Rosenqvist|first=Olof|date=2020|title=Rising to the Occasion? Youth Political Knowledge and the Voting ...Age|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-political-science/article/rising-to-the-occasion-youth-political-knowledge-and-the-voting-age/B52EB949B70DED5EACDA6B2932D3C017/core-reader|journal=British Journal of Political Science|language=en|volume=50|issue=2|pages=781–792|doi=10.1017/S0007123417000515|hdl=10419/166007 |s2cid=151803349|issn=0007-1234|hdl-access=free}}</ref> The voting age had been reduced in Austria from 19 to 18 at all levels in 1992. At that time a voting age of 16 was proposed by the [[The Greens – The Green Alternative|Green Party]], but was not adopted.<ref name="NR pass"/>

The voting age for municipal elections in some [[States of Austria|states]] was lowered to 16 shortly after 2000.<ref name="16 locals">[http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/files/dms/AEM_10002-8073__E__N__S__W__.pdf ''How old is old enough?'' - the minimum age of voting and candidacy in UK elections: consultation paper] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070112073236/http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/files/dms/AEM_10002-8073__E__N__S__W__.pdf |date=12 January 2007 }}, July 2003, UK [[Electoral Commission (United Kingdom)|Electoral Commission]], para. 3.6.</ref> Three states had made the reduction by 2003 ([[Burgenland]], [[Carinthia (state)|Carinthia]] and [[Styria]]),<ref name="16 locals"/> and in May 2003 [[Vienna]] became the fourth.<ref>{{usurped|[https://web.archive.org/web/20070911145438/http://www.votesat16.org.uk/news/000030.html ''Austria joins the votes at 16 club'']}}, [[Votes at 16]]. Retrieved 6 June 2007.</ref> [[Salzburg (state)|Salzburg]] followed suit,<ref>[http://www.jugendvertretung.at/content/site/home/english/article/928.html ''Lowering the Electoral Age''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928170549/http://www.jugendvertretung.at/content/site/home/english/article/928.html |date=28 September 2007}}, Austrian National Youth Council. Retrieved 6 June 2007.</ref><ref name="DW">[http://www.demokratiezentrum.org/en/cms/topics/democracy_debates/elections/index.html ''Elections''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070703112025/http://www.demokratiezentrum.org/en/cms/topics/democracy_debates/elections/index.html |date=3 July 2007}}, Demokratiezentrum Wien. Retrieved 6 June 2007.</ref> and so by the start of 2005 the total had reached at least five states out of nine.<ref>[http://www.unhchr.ch/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/9E8D42171C86FEE9C1256F8900731350?opendocument ''Committee on Rights of Child Considers Second Periodic Report of Austria''], [[Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights|UNHCHR]], 14 January 2005.</ref> As a consequence of state law, reduction of the municipal voting age in the states of Burgenland, Salzburg and Vienna resulted in the reduction of the regional voting age in those states as well.<ref name="DW"/>

After the [[2006 Austrian legislative election|2006 election]], the winning [[Social Democratic Party of Austria|SPÖ]]-[[Austrian People's Party|ÖVP]] coalition announced on 12 January 2007 that one of its policies would be the reduction of the voting age to 16 for elections in all states and at all levels in Austria.<ref>{{cite news|last=Oleksyn|first=Veronika|title=Austrians split on voting at age 16 plan|publisher=AP/washingtonpost.com|date=12 January 2007|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/12/AR2007011202410.html|access-date=2 February 2007}}</ref> The policy was set in motion by a Government announcement on 14 March,<ref>
{{cite news|title=Austria lowers voting age|publisher=IOL, South Africa|date=14 March 2007|url=http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=3&art_id=nw20070314154425183C442915|access-date=30 March 2007}}</ref> and a bill proposing an amendment to the [[Constitution of Austria|Constitution]] was presented to the [[Parliament of Austria|legislature]] on 2 May.<ref>{{cite news|title=Austria lowers voting age to 16|publisher=News 24, South Africa|date=3 May 2007|url=http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2107576,00.html|access-date=6 May 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070517043147/http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2107576,00.html|archive-date=17 May 2007}}</ref><ref>[http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,4792751&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL 94 d.B. (XXIII. GP) Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz geändert wird] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929125239/http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,4792751&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL |date=29 September 2007}}, Republik Österreich Parlament (German).</ref> On 5 June the [[National Council of Austria|National Council]] approved the proposal following a recommendation from its Constitution Committee.<ref name="Austria 4">{{cite news|title=Austria lowers voting age to 16|publisher=EUX.tv&nbsp;— the Europe Channel, the Netherlands|date=5 June 2007|url=http://www.eux.tv/article.aspx?articleId=9251|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930190614/http://www.eux.tv/article.aspx?articleId=9251|archive-date=30 September 2007}}</ref><ref name="NR pass">[http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,5450640&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL Wählen mit 16, Briefwahl, fünfjährige Gesetzgebungsperiode kommen] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929125113/http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,5450640&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL |date=29 September 2007}}, Republik Österreich Parlament (German). Retrieved 6 June 2007.</ref><ref>[http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,5234640&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL Verfassungsausschuss gibt grünes Licht für Wahlrechtsreform] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926234111/http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,5234640&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL |date=26 September 2007 }}, Republik Österreich Parlament (German). Retrieved 25 May 2007.</ref> During the passage of the bill through the chamber relatively little opposition was raised to the reduction, with four out of five parties explicitly supporting it; indeed, there was some dispute over which party had been the first to suggest the idea. Greater controversy surrounded the other provisions of the bill concerning the ''Briefwahl'', or [[postal voting|postal vote]], and the extension of the legislative period for the National Council from four to five years.<ref name="NR pass"/> A further uncontroversial inclusion was a reduction in the [[age of candidacy|candidacy age]] from 19 to 18. The [[Federal Council of Austria|Federal Council]] approved the Bill on 21 June, with no party voting against it.<ref>[http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,5818640&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL Wahlrechtsreform 2007 passiert den Bundesrat] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929123606/http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,5818640&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL |date=29 September 2007 }}, Republik Österreich Parlament (German). Retrieved 30 June 2007.</ref> The voting age was reduced when the Bill's provisions came into force on 1 July 2007.<ref name="final Austria Bill">[http://66.249.91.104/translate_c?hl=en&u=http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/pls/portal/docs/page/PG/DE/XXIII/I/I_00129/FNAMEORIG_079516.HTML 31/BNR (XXIII. GP) Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20070929093109/http://66.249.91.104/translate_c?hl=en&u=http://www.parlinkom.gv.at/pls/portal/docs/page/PG/DE/XXIII/I/I_00129/FNAMEORIG_079516.HTML |date=29 September 2007 }}, ss. 1, 5 and 25, Republik Österreich Parlament (German). Retrieved 1 July 2007.</ref> Austria thus became the first member of the European Union, and the first of the [[developed world]] democracies, to adopt a voting age of 16 for all purposes.<ref name="Austria 4"/> Lowering the voting age encouraged political interest in young people in Austria.  More sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds voted than eighteen-to-twenty-one-year-olds in Austria.<ref>{{Cite web |title=5.2 Youth participation in representative democracy |url=https://national-policies.eacea.ec.europa.eu/youthwiki/chapters/austria/52-youth-participation-in-representative-democracy |access-date=2024-09-22 |website=national-policies.eacea.ec.europa.eu}}</ref>

=== Brazil ===
[[Brazil]] lowered the voting age from 18 to 16 in the [[Constitution of Brazil|1988 constitution]]. The presidential election of 1989 was the first with the lower voting age. People between the ages 18 and 70 are required to vote. The person must be 16 full years old on the eve of the election (In years without election, the person must be 16 full years old on or before 31 December). If they turn 18 years old after the election, the vote is not compulsory. When they turn 18 years old before the election, the vote is compulsory.

=== Canada ===
Canada lowered its federal voting age from 21 to 18 in 1970.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=bkg&document=ec90785&lang=e |title=The Evolution of the Federal Franchise |date=December 2014 |website=[[Elections Canada]]}}</ref><ref name="Maloney1"/> Most [[Provinces and territories of Canada|Canadian provinces]] soon followed suit, though several initially lowered their voting age to 19. It wasn't until 1992 when the last province, [[British Columbia]], lowered its voting age to 18.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2008-05-09 |title=Electoral History of B.C. |url=https://elections.bc.ca/2024-provincial-election/outreach-and-education/electoral-history-of-bc/ |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=Elections BC}}</ref> A further reduction to 16 was proposed federally in 2005, but was not adopted.<ref name="vote16.ca/2007" /><ref name="Wherry1"/> It was proposed again in 2011, but was not adopted.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-03 |title=NDP revive pitch to lower the voting age in Canada |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/ndp-revive-pitch-to-lower-the-voting-age-in-canada-1.5886443 |access-date=2022-05-03 |website=CTVNews |language=en}}</ref>

In August 2018, in [[British Columbia]], a group of 20 youth partnered with [[Dogwood Initiative|Dogwood BC]] to launch a Vote16 campaign.<ref name="Dogwood">{{cite news |url=https://dogwoodbc.ca/lower-bc-voting-age |title=Lower the voting age to 16 in B.C. |website=[[Dogwood Initiative|Dogwood BC]] |date=2021}}</ref> Currently, they have unanimous support from the [[List of local government organizations#Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM)|Union of BC Municipalities]],<ref>{{cite news |last=McElroy |first=Justin |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/ubcm-16-vote-age-2019-1.5299066 |title=B.C. municipalities want to lower the voting age in local elections to 16 |date=September 26, 2019 |work=[[CBC News]]}}</ref> as well as endorsements from the province's [[Green Party of British Columbia]] and [[British Columbia New Democratic Party]] representatives.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pawson |first=Chad |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-ndp-party-resolutions-lowering-voting-age-to-16-1.5371701 |title=How B.C. NDP resolutions could change the future of elections in the province |date=November 24, 2019 |work=[[CBC News]]}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=December 2021}} The campaign is now waiting for it to be brought up in the legislative assembly by the NDP and for it to pass there.<ref name="Dogwood"/>{{better source needed|date=December 2021}}

In 2020, Canadian Senator [[Marilou McPhedran]] introduced a bill to lower the federal voting age from 18 to 16. She reintroduced it again in November 2021, (bill S-201), but it died on the floor when Parliament was [[Prorogation in Canada|prorogued]] in [[2024–2025 Canadian political crisis|January 2025]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Silver |first=Janet E |url=https://ipolitics.ca/2021/02/26/independent-senators-bill-would-lower-the-voting-age-to-16/ |title=Independent senator's bill would lower the voting age to 16 |date=February 26, 2021 |work=[[iPolitics]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-thursday-edition-1.5578885/why-this-senator-thinks-canadians-should-start-voting-at-16-1.5578888 |title=Why this senator thinks Canadians should start voting at 16 |date=May 21, 2020 |work=[[CBC Radio]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title= S-201 (44-1) - LEGISinfo - Parliament of Canada|url=https://www.parl.ca/legisinfo/en/bill/44-1/s-201}}</ref> In December 2021, a group of young people filed a court challenge to lower the federal voting age from 18, arguing that the voting age is unconstitutional for violating multiple sections of the [[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]].<ref name="Maloney1">{{cite news |last=Maloney |first=Ryan |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/young-canadians-voting-age-challenge-1.6268431 |title=Young Canadians launch court challenge to lower federal voting age from 18 |date=December 1, 2021 |work=[[CBC News]]}}</ref> Several weeks later, [[Taylor Bachrach]] of the [[New Democratic Party]] (NDP) introduced a private member's bill to lower the voting age to 16.<ref name="Wherry1">{{cite news |first=Aaron |last=Wherry |date=December 13, 2021 |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/voting-age-canada-taylor-bachrach-1.6284418 |title=NDP MP launches bill to lower voting age to 16 |work=[[CBC News]]}}</ref> The bill (C-210) was debated in May 2022.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-05-03 |title=House of Commons to debate NDP bill on lowering voting age to 16 |language=en-CA |work=The Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-ndp-bill-on-lowering-voting-age-to-16-will-be-debated-in-house-of/ |access-date=2022-05-04}}</ref> The bill was defeated in its second reading with 245 members of parliament voting to oppose the bill and 77 voting to support it.<ref>{{cite news |last= Blagden |first= Jeff |date= 28 September 2022 |title= Bill to Lower Voting Age to 16 Proposed by Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach Defeated in Second Reading |url= https://www.cfnrfm.ca/2022/09/28/bill-to-lower-voting-age-to-16-proposed-by-skeena-bulkley-valley-mp-taylor-bachrach-defeated-in-second-reading/ |work= CFNR Network |access-date= 9 October 2023}}</ref>

Internal elections run by [[List of political parties in Canada|Canadian political parties]] have a lower voting age than that of general elections set by the government, typically allowing party members 14 and up to vote.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Governing Documents |url=https://www.conservative.ca/about-us/governing-documents/ |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=Conservative Party of Canada |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Documents {{!}} Liberal Party of Canada |url=https://liberal.ca/documents/ |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=liberal.ca |language=en-CA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Constitution of the Green Party of Canada |url=https://www.greenparty.ca/en/party/documents/constitution |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=Green Party of Canada |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-11-07 |title=Accueil |url=https://www.blocquebecois.org/ |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=Bloc Québécois |language=fr-FR}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Membership EN |url=https://act.ndp.ca/donate/membership-en |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=Canada's NDP |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=David Eby's BC NDP >> Taking Action for You |url=https://www.bcndp.ca/ |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=BC NDP |language=en}}</ref>

=== Cuba ===
As stated in the Constitution of the Republic of Cuba, the voting age is 16 for men and women.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Constitution of the Republic of Cuba |url=http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/research/cuba-constitution.html |access-date=2022-08-23 |website=hrlibrary.umn.edu}}</ref>

=== Germany ===
As part of their [[2021 German federal election#Government formation|2021 coalition deal]], the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|SPD]], [[Alliance 90/The Greens|Greens]] and [[Free Democratic Party (Germany)|FDP]] agreed to lower the voting age for European Elections to 16 within the course of the [[20th Bundestag]]. They successfully did so in time for the [[2024 European Parliament election|2024 European parliament elections]]. They also aimed to lower the voting age for elections to the German parliament. However, this would need a change of the constitution, which was blocked by the opposition [[CDU/CSU|CDU]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Germany's Greens approve three-party coalition deal|publisher=[[Deutsche Welle]]|date=6 December 2021|url=https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-greens-approve-three-party-coalition-deal/a-60030550|access-date=6 December 2021}}</ref> Seven of the 16 [[States of Germany|states]] have also lowered their voting age for state elections and 11 of the 16 have lowered it for local elections.

=== Iceland ===
The first proposal to lower the voting age to 16 years was submitted in [[Althing|parliament]] in 2007. A bill to lower the voting age for municipal elections reached the final reading in 2018, but was [[filibuster]]ed by opponents until the close of the parliamentary session.<ref>{{cite news|title=Bill To Lower Voting Age To 16 in Iceland Submitted Again|publisher=[[The Reykjavík Grapevine]]|date=16 November 2018|url=https://grapevine.is/news/2018/11/16/bill-to-lower-voting-age-to-16-in-iceland-submitted-again/|access-date=24 April 2019}}</ref>

On 28 October 2023, the municipalities of [[Vesturbyggð]] and [[Tálknafjarðarhreppur]] held a referendum on unification; the voting age in this referendum was lowered to 16.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.ruv.is/frettir/innlent/2023-10-08-sextan-og-sautjan-ara-ungmenni-fa-ad-kjosa-um-sameiningu-vesturbyggdar-og-talknafjardarhrepps-393370|title=Sextán og sautján ára ungmenni fá að kjósa um sameiningu Vesturbyggðar og Tálknafjarðarhrepps|date=2023-10-08|access-date=2023-10-08|publisher=RÚV|lang=is}}</ref>

=== Iran ===
Iran had been unique in awarding suffrage at 15, but raised the age to 18 in January 2007 despite the opposition of the Government.<ref name="Iran increase">{{cite news |title=Iran raises voting age to 18 |publisher=[[Iran Focus]] |date=14 January 2007 |url=http://www.iranfocus.com/en/index.php?view=article&id=9841 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629220648/http://www.iranfocus.com/en/index.php?view=article&id=9841 |archive-date=29 June 2017}}</ref> In May 2007 the Iranian Cabinet proposed a bill to reverse the increase.{{citation needed|date=July 2021}}

=== Luxembourg ===
Currently, [[Luxembourg]] has [[compulsory voting]] from the age of 18. 

Discussion about lowering the voting age to 16 was first introduced as part of a wider [[2015 Luxembourg constitutional referendum|June 2015 referendum]]. The broader principles of the referendum which concerned electoral reform were rejected by 81% of voters.

Discussion, specifically surrounding the lowering of the voting age to 16 received almost universal support in 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Political parties submit proposals for Luxembourg electoral reform |url=https://www.luxtimes.lu/luxembourg/political-parties-submit-proposals-for-luxembourg-electoral-reform/38229702.html |website=Luxembourg Times|date=6 February 2025 }}</ref> Politically, only the ADR and CSV oppose the idea.

'''Malta'''

On 20 November 2013, Malta lowered the voting age from 18 to 16 for local elections starting from 2015. The proposal had wide support from both the government and opposition, social scientists and youth organizations.

On Monday, 5 March 2018, the Maltese Parliament unanimously voted in favor of amending the constitution, lowering the official voting age from 18 to 16 for general elections, European Parliament Elections and referendums, making Malta the second state in the [[European Union|EU]] to lower its voting age to 16.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web | url=https://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/85054/vote_16_unanimously_approved | title=Maltese parliament extends voting suffrage to 16-year-olds}}</ref>

=== New Zealand ===
The [[Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand|New Zealand Green Party]] [[New Zealand House of Representatives|MP]] [[Sue Bradford]] announced on 21 June 2007 that she intended to introduce her Civics Education and Voting Age Bill on the next occasion upon which a place became available for the consideration of Members' Bills.<ref>{{cite news |title=Bradford launches Bill to lower voting age to 16 {{!}} Scoop News |url=https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0706/S00410.htm |access-date=8 May 2021 |work=www.scoop.co.nz |date=2007}}</ref> When this happened on 25 July Bradford abandoned the idea, citing an adverse public reaction.<ref>{{cite news |title=Green MP drops bill to lower voting age |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/green-mp-drops-bill-to-lower-voting-age/GPXU7CUJMOQVLFC5K6ERVNKN4M/ |access-date=8 May 2021 |work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |date=2007 |language=en-NZ}}</ref> The Bill would have sought to reduce the voting age to 16 in New Zealand and make [[civics|civics education]] part of the compulsory curriculum in schools.

On 21 November 2022, the [[Supreme Court of New Zealand]] ruled in [[Make It 16 Incorporated v Attorney-General]] that the voting age of 18 was "inconsistent with the bill of rights to be free from discrimination on the basis of age".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/make-it-16-appeal-to-lower-voting-age-accepted-by-supreme-court/FAWCOW3GEFBL7D4PEOVGZ2WOVA/ |title=Supreme Court rules in favour of lowering voting age to 16 in case by 'Make it 16′ group |date=21 November 2022 |work=[[New Zealand Herald]] |first=Vita |last=Molyneux}}</ref> Prime Minister [[Jacinda Ardern]] subsequently announced that a bill to lower the voting age to 16 would be debated in parliament, requiring a supermajority to pass.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/130539700/live-lowering-voting-age-to-16-to-be-considered-by-parliament |title=Live: Lowering voting age to 16 to be considered by Parliament |date=21 November 2022 |work=[[Stuff (website)|Stuff]] |first=Anna |last=Whyte}}</ref> This bill was subsequently withdrawn in January 2024, after the [[Sixth National Government of New Zealand]] was elected.<ref>{{cite news |last= Craymer |first= Lucy |date= 26 January 2024 |title= New Zealand withdraws bill allowing 16-year-olds to vote in local body elections |url= https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/new-zealand-withdraws-bill-allowing-16-year-olds-vote-local-body-elections-2024-01-26/ |work= Reuters |access-date= 13 June 2024}}</ref>

=== United Kingdom ===
The [[Representation of the People Act 1969]] lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 for elections to the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] of the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]], the first major democratic nation to do so.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /> The [[1970 United Kingdom general election]] is the first in which this Act had effect.

Men in military service who turned 19 during the first world war were entitled to vote in 1918 irrespective of their age as part of the [[Representation of the People Act 1918]] which also allowed some women over the age of 30 to vote.  The [[Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act 1928]] brought the voting age for women down to 21.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ROYAL ASSENT. (Hansard, 2 July 1928) |url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1928/jul/02/royal-assent |website=api.parliament.uk}}</ref>

The reduction of the voting age to 16 in the United Kingdom was first given serious consideration in 1999, when the House of Commons considered in Committee an amendment proposed by [[Simon Hughes]] to the Representation of the People Bill.<ref>[https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199900/cmhansrd/vo991215/debtext/91215-steven smells14.htm#91215-14_time0 HC Deb, 15 December 1999, Vol. 341, cc. 305-338.] Retrieved 3 November 2007.</ref> This was the first time the reduction of a voting age below 18 had ever been put to a vote in the Commons.<ref name="c336">[https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199900/cmhansrd/vo991215/debtext/91215-steven smells14.htm#91215-14_time0 HC Deb, 15 December 1999, Vol. 341, c. 336.] Retrieved 3 November 2007.</ref> The Government opposed the amendment, and it was defeated by 434 votes to 36.<ref name="c336"/>

The [[Votes at 16]] coalition, a group of political and charitable organizations supporting a reduction of the voting age to 16, was launched on in 2003.<ref>{{cite news|title='A real chance to improve British Politics' - Votes at 16 Campaign Launches|publisher=Votes at 16|date=29 January 2003|url=http://www.votesat16.org.uk/news/000005/a_real_chance_to_improve_british_politics__votes_at_16_campaign_launches.html|access-date=3 November 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071117063632/http://www.votesat16.org.uk/news/000005/a_real_chance_to_improve_british_politics__votes_at_16_campaign_launches.html|archive-date=17 November 2007}}</ref> At that time a [[Private Member's Bill]] was also proposed in the [[House of Lords]] by [[Ralph Palmer, 12th Baron Lucas|Lord Lucas]].<ref>The [https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200203/ldbills/010/2003010.htm Voting Age (Reduction to 16) Bill (HL)].</ref>

In 2004, the [[Electoral Commission (United Kingdom)|UK Electoral Commission]] conducted a major consultation on the subject of the voting age and [[age of candidacy]], and received a significant response. In its conclusions, it recommended that the voting age remain at 18.<ref>[http://www.bibliotheque.assnat.qc.ca/01/mono/2005/10/826116.pdf ''Age of Electoral Majority''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070710072228/http://www.bibliotheque.assnat.qc.ca/01/mono/2005/10/826116.pdf |date=10 July 2007 }}, Electoral Commission, 19 April 2004, para. 8.16</ref> In 2005, the House of Commons voted 136-128 (on a [[free vote]]) against a Private Member's Bill for a reduction in the voting age to 16 proposed by [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrat]] MP [[Stephen Williams (British politician)|Stephen Williams]]. Parliament chose not to include a provision reducing the voting age in the [[Electoral Administration Act 2006|Electoral Administration Act]] during its passage in 2006.

The report of the [[Power Inquiry]] in 2006 called for a reduction of the voting age, and of the candidacy age for the House of Commons, to 16.<ref>{{cite news|title=Political system faces 'meltdown'|work=[[BBC News]] |date=27 February 2006|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4753876.stm}}</ref> On the same day the [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]], [[Gordon Brown]], indicated in an article in [[The Guardian]] that he favored a reduction provided it was made concurrently with effective [[citizenship education (subject)|citizenship education]].<ref>{{cite news|title=And so does Gordon Brown|publisher=Votes at 16|date=27 February 2006|url=http://www.votesat16.org.uk/news/000134/and_so_does_gordon_brown.html|access-date=3 November 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071117063519/http://www.votesat16.org.uk/news/000134/and_so_does_gordon_brown.html|archive-date=17 November 2007}}</ref>

The [[Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Justice]] published in 2007 a [[Green Paper]] entitled The Governance of Britain, in which it proposed the establishment of a "Youth Citizenship Commission".<ref>[http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/document/cm71/7170/7170.pdf ''The Governance of Britain''], [[Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)|UK Ministry of Justice]], 3 July 2007, para. 190. Retrieved 5 July 2007.</ref> The Commission would examine the case for lowering the voting age. On launching the paper in the House of Commons, [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] Gordon Brown said: "Although the voting age has been 18 since 1969, it is right, as part of that debate, to examine, and hear from young people themselves, whether lowering that age would increase participation."<ref>[https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070703/debtext/70703-0004.htm HC Deb, 3 July 2007, Vol. 462, c. 819.] Retrieved 5 July 2007.</ref>

During the Youth Parliament debates of in 2009 in the House of Commons, Votes at 16 was debated and young people of that age group voted for it overwhelmingly as a campaign priority. In April 2015, Labour announced that it would support the policy if it won an overall majority in the [[2015 United Kingdom general election|2015 general election]],<ref>[http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/04/07/labour-vow-to-lower-voting-age-to-16_n_7015622.html Labour Vows To Lower Voting Age To 16]. Huffington Post (UK edition). Published 7 April 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2017.</ref> which it failed to do.

In July 2024 however, [[Keir Starmer]] the current leader of the UK [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]], became elected as [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom]]. As part of the parties 2024 manifesto (in the run up to the general election) Labour maintained this previous position, Keir Starmer himself confirming that he would lower the voting age from 18 to 16 in all elections (if elected). Prior to the 2024 election, the voting age in both [[Scotland]] and [[Wales]] was and is already set at 16, by the relevant governments of both UK nations (see detail specifics below).

There was some criticism about not reducing the voting age to 16 years for the [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|referendum on the membership in the European Union in 2016]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/brexit-eu-referendum-latest-protest-young-people-parliament-vote-a7101701.html|title=Young people are gathering at Parliament furious at not being given the vote|website=[[Independent.co.uk]]|date=24 June 2016|language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/young-voters-wanted-brexit-least-8271517|title=Young voters wanted Brexit the least - and must live with it the longest|last=Bloom|first=Dan|website=[[Daily Mirror]]|date=24 June 2016}}</ref>

YouGov poll research from 2018 shows that whilst the public are still opposed, there is growing support for extending the franchise. As of May 2019, all the main parties, with the exception of the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservatives]], back reducing the age to 16. Some have argued the Conservatives are hypocritical not to support this, as they allow 16-year-olds to vote in their leadership elections. It is also argued that all the main parties' approach is self-serving as younger voters are thought more likely to support left leaning parties and remaining in the EU, and less likely to support right leaning parties, and leaving the EU.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/should-the-voting-age-be-lowered-to-16-a8882731.html|title=Should the voting age be lowered to 16?|date=23 May 2019|website=The Independent}}</ref>

==== Scotland ====
The [[Scottish National Party]] conference voted unanimously on 27 October 2007 for a policy of reducing the voting age to 16 (the [[age of majority]] in Scotland), as well as in favor of a campaign for the necessary power to be devolved to the [[Scottish Parliament]].<ref>{{cite news|title='Vote at 16' move backed by SNP|work=[[BBC News]] |date=27 October 2007|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7065046.stm}}</ref>

In September 2011, it was announced that the voting age was likely to be reduced from 18 to 16 for the [[Scottish independence referendum]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/scotland/article3167034.ece|title=16-year-olds likely to get the vote on Union split|last=Macdonnell|first=Hamish|date=17 September 2011|work=The Times Scotland|publisher=Times Newspapers Limited|location=London}}</ref> This was approved by the Scottish Parliament in June 2013.<ref>{{cite news|title=Scottish independence: Referendum voting age bill approved by MSPs|work=[[BBC News]] |date=27 June 2013|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-23074572}}</ref>

In June 2015, the [[Scottish Parliament]] voted unanimously to reduce the voting age to 16 for elections for the Scottish Parliament and for Scottish [[Local government in Scotland|local government]] elections. The voting age in Scotland remains 18 for UK general elections.<ref name="scotlandcut">{{cite news |date=18 June 2015 |title=Cut in Scottish voting age passed unanimously |work=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-33173488}}</ref>

==== Wales ====
Major reforms were recommended in 2017 in the 'A Parliament That Works For Wales' report, by the expert panel on Assembly Electoral Reform led by Professor [[Laura McAllister]]. It included increasing the size of the Assembly, adapting or changing the electoral system and of course reducing the age of voting to 16.<ref>{{Cite web|title=A Parliament That Works For Wales|url=https://senedd.wales/NAfW%20Documents/About%20the%20Assembly%20section%20documents/Expert%20Panel%20on%20Assembly%20Electoral%20Reform/A%20Parliament%20that%20Works%20for%20Wales.pdf|date=Nov 2017}}</ref>

The [[Senedd Commission|Welsh Assembly's Commission]], the corporate body, introduced a bill in 2019 to reduce the voting age to 16 and change the name to Senedd.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://senedd.wales/laid%20documents/pri-ld12142/pri-ld12142-e.pdf|title=Senedd and Elections (Wales) Bill [AS INTRODUCED]}}</ref> The [[Senedd|National Assembly for Wales]] passed the [[Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020|Senedd and Election (Wales) Act]] later that year.<ref name="WAG">{{cite web|url=http://www.senedd.assembly.wales/documents/s96314/Senedd%20and%20Elections%20Wales%20Bill,%20as%20passed%20unchecked.pdf|title=Senedd and Elections (Wales) Bill|publisher=Senedd|access-date=24 December 2019}}</ref> A vote to remove this enfranchisement was defeated by 41 votes to 11. The first election to include the biggest enfranchisement in Welsh politics since 1969 was the [[2021 Senedd election]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Assembly passes new law to give 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote in Welsh elections|url=https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2019-11-27/assembly-passes-new-law-to-give-16-and-17-year-olds-the-right-to-vote-in-welsh-elections/|website=ITV News|date=27 November 2019|language=en|access-date=2020-05-11}}</ref>

The [[Welsh Government]] also legislated for the enfranchisement of 16 and 17-year-olds in the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act, which received royal assent in 2021. The changes were in place for local Welsh elections in 2022. The voting age in Wales remains 18 for UK general elections.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Major local electoral changes include votes at 16|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-50419406|date=18 November 2019|work=BBC}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Bill to revolutionise local government and democracy passed in the Senedd|url=https://gov.wales/bill-revolutionise-local-government-and-democracy-passed-senedd|access-date=2021-01-21|website=GOV.WALES|date=18 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=18 November 2019|title=Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021|url=https://business.senedd.wales/mgIssueHistoryHome.aspx?IId=26688|access-date=21 January 2021|website=Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament|language=en-gb}}</ref>

==== British Overseas Territories ====
The voting age in the [[British Overseas Territory|British Overseas Territories]] (those parts of the British Realm that lie outside the archipelago of the British Isles, which, before 1983, were termed ''British colonies'', and, from 1983 to 2002, ''British Dependent Territories'') for the national (ie, "British") Parliamentary elections is the same as in that part of the realm that lies within the British Isles, although - as no electoral district has ever been created for any British Overseas Territory, British nationals from the territories must first establish residency in an existing electoral district in order to exercise their voting rights in national elections. Local elected legislatures were established in [[Colony of Virginia|Virginia]] in 1619 and [[Bermuda]] (originally settled as part of Virginia) in 1620. Sovereignty remained with the national (British) government, with the British Parliament asserting its right to legislate for the colonies,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9708 |title=Representing the Overseas Territories in the UK Parliament and Government |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=7 February 2023 |website=UK Parliament (House of Commons Library) |publisher=UK Government |access-date=14 January 2024 |quote=All the Territories have a UK-appointed Governor, who generally holds responsibility for managing the Territory’s external affairs, defence and internal security like the police, and often the power to make or veto laws.......As a matter of constitutional law, the UK Parliament has unlimited power to legislate for the Territories. However, passing legislation for the Territories is rare.}}</ref> though in practice certain competencies were delegated by the British government to the local governments (varying depending upon the degree of representation in the local government of each colony). 

Since the 1960s, most of the remaining colonies have been given elected legislatures similar to Bermuda's (or the Councils that advise the appointed governors, originally made up only of appointees, now include elected members), with the enfranchisement for local elections determined by local legislation (subject, like all local legislation, to the approval of the national government). In [[Anguilla]], Bermuda, the [[British Virgin Islands]], the [[Cayman Islands]], the [[Falkland Islands]], [[Gibraltar]], [[Montserrat]], the [[Pitcairn Islands]], [[Saint Helena]] (and presumably [[Ascension Island]] and [[Tristan da Cunha]]), and [[Turks and Caicos Islands]] the current voting ages for local elections are all 18. There are no permanent inhabitants, and no local legislatures in [[British Antarctic Territory]], [[British Indian Ocean Territory]], and [[South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands]]. Under the agreement with [[Cyprus]] by which Britain retained the Sovereign Base Areas of [[Akrotiri and Dhekelia]], the British government agreed not to set up and administer "colonies" and not to allow new settlement of people in the Sovereign Base Areas other than for temporary purposes. There is no local legislature and consequently there are no local elections.

==== Crown Dependencies ====
As of 2025, the voting age in all [[Crown Dependencies|British Crown Dependencies]] is now set at '''16'''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Elections and Voting (Isle of Man Government) |url=https://www.gov.im/categories/home-and-neighbourhood/elections-and-voting/ |website=Isle of Man Government}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Public Elections - reduction in voting age to 16 |url=https://statesassembly.je/publications/propositions/2007/p-63-2007 |website=Jersey (States Assembly)}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=States of Guernsey voted to lower the voting age |url=https://history.gg/guernsey-voting-age/ |website=history.gg|date=31 October 1972 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Alderney gives 16 year olds the right to vote |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-guernsey-63033445.amp |website=[[BBC News]] |date=26 September 2022 }}</ref><ref name=":10" />

Moves to lower the voting age to 16 were first successful in three British [[Crown dependencies]] from 2006 to 2008. The [[Isle of Man]] was the first to amend previous legislation in 2006, when it reduced the voting age to 16 for its [[House of Keys|general elections]], with the House of Keys approving the move by 19 votes to 4.<ref>{{cite news|title=Teenagers vote in Manx election|work=[[BBC News]] |date=13 July 2006|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/isle_of_man/5175426.stm}}</ref>

[[Jersey]] followed suit in 2007, when it approved a reduction of the voting age to 16. The [[States of Jersey]] voted narrowly in favour, by 25 votes to 21,<ref>[http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/view_vote.asp?id_number=577 Vote P63/2007] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928030555/http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/view_vote.asp?id_number=577 |date=28 September 2007 }}, [[States of Jersey]], 4 July 2007. Retrieved 6 July 2007.</ref> and the legislative amendments were adopted.<ref>[http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/documents/minutes/8199-16502-4102007.htm States of Jersey Minutes] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607150754/http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/documents/minutes/8199-16502-4102007.htm |date=7 June 2011 }}, 26 September 2007. Retrieved 24 October 2007.</ref> The law was sanctioned by [[Order in Council]],<ref name="PC sanction">[http://www.privycouncil.gov.uk/files/word/List%20December%202007.doc ORDERS APPROVED AT THE PRIVY COUNCIL HELD BY THE QUEEN AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE ON 12 December 2007] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216060420/http://www.privycouncil.gov.uk/files/word/List%20December%202007.doc |date=16 February 2008 }}, [[Privy Council of the United Kingdom|Privy Council]] Office, 20 December 2007. Retrieved 15 January 2008.</ref><ref name="Jersey law">[https://archive.today/20130218152328/http://www.jerseylegalinfo.je/Law/display.aspx?url=lawsinforce%5Chtm%5CLawFiles%5C2008/L-01-2008.htm Public Elections (Amendment No. 2) (Jersey) Law 2008], Jersey Legal Information Board. Retrieved 15 January 2008.</ref> and was brought into force in time for the [[2008 Jersey general election|general elections in late 2008]].<ref>[http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/documents/propositions/8355-38690-1552007.htm ''Public Elections: reduction in voting age to 16''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928030342/http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/documents/propositions/8355-38690-1552007.htm |date=28 September 2007 }}, [[States of Jersey]], 15 May 2007. Retrieved 6 July 2007.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Public Elections (Amendment No. 2) (Jersey) Law 2007 (Appointed Day) Act 2008 |url=https://www.jerseylaw.je/laws/enacted/Pages/RO-041-2008.aspx |access-date=30 March 2022|website=[[Jersey Legal Information Board]]}}</ref>

In 2007, a proposal<ref>{{cite news|title=Give our young people a voice|work=The Guernsey Press and Star|date=18 September 2007|url=http://www.thisisguernsey.com/code/showarchive.pl?ArticleID=002703&year=2007&category=news|access-date=23 September 2007|archive-date=14 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614044729/http://www.thisisguernsey.com/code/showarchive.pl?ArticleID=002703&year=2007&category=news|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="States of Guernsey">[http://www.gov.gg/ccm/policy-and-hr/billets--resolutions/2007/blllet-dtat---xxii-2007-october.en Billet d'État XXII 2007 (October) & Resolutions] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723180910/http://www.gov.gg/ccm/policy-and-hr/billets--resolutions/2007/blllet-dtat---xxii-2007-october.en |date=23 July 2011 }}, [[States of Guernsey]]. Retrieved 20 December 2007.</ref> for a reduction (in voting age to 16) made by the House Committee of the [[States of Guernsey]], and approved by the States' Policy Committee, was adopted by the assembly by 30 votes to 15.<ref name="States of Guernsey"/><ref>{{cite news|title=Too young at 16 to vote&nbsp;– deputy|work=The Guernsey Press and Star|date=2 November 2007|url=http://www.thisisguernsey.com/code/shownewsarticle.pl?ArticleID=002891|access-date=3 November 2007|archive-date=18 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418093110/http://www.thisisguernsey.com/code/shownewsarticle.pl?ArticleID=002891|url-status=dead}}</ref> An Order in Council sanctioned the law,<ref name="PC sanction"/> and it was registered at the Court of Guernsey. It came into force immediately, and the voting age was accordingly reduced in time for the [[2008 Guernsey general election]].<ref name="Guernsey Court">{{cite news|title=16 Year Olds Can Vote in General Election|publisher=States of Guernsey&nbsp;— The Official Guernsey Government Website|date=19 December 2007|url=http://www.gov.gg/ccm/policy-and-hr/press-release/2007/december/16-Year-Olds-can-Vote-in-General-Election.en|access-date=15 January 2008}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In 2022, both [[Alderney]] and [[Sark]] passed legislation which lowered the voting age to 16 for all elections going forward.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alderney gives 16 year olds the right to vote |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-guernsey-63033445.amp |website=[[BBC News]] |date=26 September 2022 }}</ref><ref name=":10">{{Cite web |title=16 and 17-year-olds given voting rights in Sark |url=https://www.itv.com/news/channel/2022-11-18/sark-voting-age-lowered-to-16 |website=ITVX}}</ref>

=== United States ===
[[File:Voting Rights for 17-year-olds in US States.svg|thumb|left|Blue indicates a state that allows 17-year-olds who will turn 18 on or before election day to vote in caucuses or primaries. Pink indicates states that allow 17-year-olds to participate in presidential caucuses, but may not vote in primary elections for other offices.]]

In the United States, the debate about lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 began during [[World War II]] and intensified during the [[Vietnam War]], when most of those subjected to the draft were too young to vote, and the image of young men being forced to risk their lives in the military without the privileges of voting successfully pressured legislators to lower the voting age nationally and in many states. By 1968, several states had lowered the voting age below 21 years: Alaska and Hawaii's minimum age was 20,<ref name="auto">{{cite news|title=Constitution lowers voting age to 19|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BSwmAAAAIBAJ&pg=770%2C2580870|work=Baltimore Afro-American|date=6 April 1968}}</ref> while Georgia<ref name="auto"/> and Kentucky's was 18.<ref>{{cite web |title=Section 145 Persons entitled to vote. |url=https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/Law/Constitution/Constitution/ViewConstitution?rsn=166 |website=Constitution of Kentucky |publisher=Kentucky Legislative Research Commission |access-date=12 March 2020}}</ref> In 1970, the Supreme Court in ''[[Oregon v. Mitchell]]'' ruled that Congress had the right to regulate the minimum voting age in federal elections; however, it decided it could not regulate it at local and state level.

The [[Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution]] (passed and ratified in 1971)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.com/topics/the-26th-amendment |title=The 26th Amendment|publisher=A&E Television Networks|year=1996}}</ref> prevents states from setting a voting age higher than 18.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-CONAN-2014/pdf/GPO-CONAN-2014-10-27.pdf |title=GovInfo. U.S. Government Publishing Office|publisher=GovInfo|year=2014}} </ref> Except for the express limitations provided for in Amendments XIV, XV, XIX and XXVI, voter qualifications for House and Senate elections are largely delegated to the States under Article I, Section 2 and Amendment XVII of the United States Constitution, which respectively state that "The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and ''the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature''." and "The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The ''electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures''."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html|title=Transcript of the Constitution of the United States - Official Text|work=archives.gov|date=30 January 2015}}</ref>

Seventeen states permit 17-year-olds to vote in [[primary elections]] and caucuses if they will be 18 by election day: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/16%20Regular/bills/house/HB0138.pdf|title=House Bill 138, 52ND LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 2016|last=Steinborn|first=Jeff|website=New Mexico Legislature|access-date=11 March 2016}}</ref> North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia, Vermont, and West Virginia. Iowa, Minnesota, and Nevada allow 17-year-olds to participate in all presidential caucuses, but may not vote in primary elections for other offices. Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Washington, and Wyoming allow 17-year-olds to participate in only Democratic caucuses, but not in the Republican caucus.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fairvote.org/reforms/universal-voter-registration/17-year-old-primary-voting-2/|title=FairVote.org - 17-year-old Primary Voting|work=FairVote|access-date=7 November 2014|archive-date=7 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141107022228/http://www.fairvote.org/reforms/universal-voter-registration/17-year-old-primary-voting-2/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

All states allow someone not yet 18 to preregister to vote. Fifteen states — California, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah, Virginia, and Washington — and Washington, D.C., allow 16-year-olds to preregister. In Maine, Nevada, New Jersey, and West Virginia, 17-year-olds can preregister. Alaska allows a teen to preregister within 90 days of their 18th birthday. Georgia, Iowa, and Missouri allow 17.5-year-olds to preregister if they turn 18 before the next election. Texas allows someone 17 year and 10 months old to preregister. The remaining states, excepting North Dakota, do not specify an age for preregistration so long as the teen will be 18 by the next election (usually the next general election). North Dakota does not require voter registration.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-06-21 |title=Preregistration for Young Voters |url=https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/preregistration-for-young-voters.aspx |access-date=2022-11-30 |website=National Conference of State Legislatures}}</ref>

On 3 April 2019, [[Andrew Yang]] became the first major presidential candidate to advocate for the United States to lower its voting age to 16.<ref>{{cite tweet |user=AndrewYang |author-link=Andrew Yang |number=1113532385298194432 |date=3 April 2019 || title=New policy #7 - Lower the Voting Age to 16. Getting young people voting early makes them voters for life. Our politics will affect young people for decades to come. They should have a say in their own future. }}</ref> At 16, Americans do not have hourly limits imposed on their work, and they pay taxes. According to Yang, their livelihoods are directly impacted by legislation, and they should therefore be allowed to vote for their representatives.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.yang2020.com/policies/votingage/|access-date=4 May 2019|title=Lower the Voting Age to 16|archive-date=26 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190826125216/https://www.yang2020.com/policies/votingage/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2018, a bill in the [[Council of the District of Columbia]] was proposed to lower the voting age to 16, which would make the federal district the first jurisdiction to lower the voting age for federal level elections.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2018/04/17/washington-d-c-may-allow-16-year-olds-vote-president-2020-election/523301002/|newspaper=USA Today|title=Washington, D.C., may allow 16-year-olds to vote for president in the 2020 election|date=17 April 2018}}</ref> In 2019, Washington D.C., Council Member Charles Allen sponsored a debate on whether or not the city should lower the voting age to 16 for all elections, including the presidential election in the city. Allen gained a magnitude of public support although the measure to lower the age of voting stalled.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Douglas |first=Joshua |author1-link=Joshua Douglas |title=Lowering the Voting Age from the Ground Up: The United States' Experience in Allowing 16-Year Olds to Vote. |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=2019}}</ref>

==== Youth voting at the local level ====
In 2013, the [[Takoma Park, Maryland|City of Takoma Park, Maryland]], became the first place in the United States to lower its voting age to 16 for municipal elections and referendums.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/takoma-park-grants-16-year-olds-right-to-vote/2013/05/14/b27c52c4-bccd-11e2-89c9-3be8095fe767_story.html|title=Takoma Park grants 16-year-olds right to vote|work=WashingtonPost.com|date=14 May 2013|first=Lindsay A.|last=Powers}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/11/05/election-day-weird/3448145/|newspaper=USA Today|title=16-year-olds voting? Secession? 5 Election Day oddities|date=6 November 2013}}</ref> {{Asof|2024}}, [[Greenbelt, Maryland|Greenbelt]], [[Hyattsville, Maryland|Hyattsville]], [[Riverdale Park, Maryland|Riverdale Park]], [[Mount Rainier, Maryland|Mount Rainier]], [[Somerset, Maryland|Somerset]] and [[Chevy Chase, Maryland|Chevy Chase]] had followed suit.<ref>{{Cite web|url= https://vote16usa.org/project/maryland/|title=Maryland|publisher=Vote16USA|access-date=2022-11-30}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Peveto |first=Brett |date=2023-09-19 |title=Some Maryland Communities Lowering Voting Age to 16 |url=https://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/86383-1 |access-date=2024-01-22 |website=Public News Service}}</ref>

Starting in 2024, 16 and 17-year-olds can vote on School Board races in [[Berkeley, California|Berkeley]],<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Finney |first=Annelise |date=2024-08-17 |title=How Teen Voters in Berkeley, Oakland Can Shape Upcoming School Board Elections |url=https://www.kqed.org/news/12000395/how-teen-voters-in-berkeley-oakland-can-shape-upcoming-school-board-elections |access-date=2024-08-18 |website=[[KQED, Inc.]] |language=en}}</ref> [[Oakland, California|Oakland]]<ref name=":8" /> and [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tully |first=Tracey |date=2024-01-10 |title=In Newark, 16-Year-Olds Win the Right to Vote in School Board Races |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/10/nyregion/newark-voting-age.html |access-date=2024-08-18 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> 

In Massachusetts, the state has blocked efforts to lower the voting age for local elections to 16 in [[Ashfield, Massachusetts|Ashfield]], [[Boston]], [[Brookline, Massachusetts|Brookline]], [[Cambridge, Massachusetts|Cambridge]], [[Concord, Massachusetts|Concord]], [[Harwich, Massachusetts|Harwich]], [[Lowell, Massachusetts|Lowell]], [[Northampton, Massachusetts|Northampton]], [[Shelburne, Massachusetts|Shelburne]], [[Somerville, Massachusetts|Somerville]], and [[Wendell, Massachusetts|Wendell]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wintersmith |first=Saraya |date=2022-11-28 |title=Boston to Weigh Teenagers Voting in Local Elections |language=en |work=WGBH |url=https://www.wgbh.org/news/politics/2022/11/28/boston-to-weigh-teenagers-voting-in-local-elections |access-date=2022-11-30}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Drysdale |first=Sam |date=2022-12-01 |title=City Council backs lower voting age in Boston |language=en |work=WBUR |agency=State House News Service |url=https://www.wbur.org/news/2022/12/01/boston-16-17-year-old-voters-council-approval |access-date=2022-12-31}}</ref>
==== Debate on increasing the voting age ====
During the [[2024 Republican Party presidential primaries]], [[Vivek Ramaswamy]] announced that he favored raising the voting age to 25 in most circumstances. The policy change, which would have to be done through a [[List of proposed amendments to the United States Constitution|constitutional amendment]], would only allow for citizens between 18 and 24 to vote if they are enlisted in the [[US military|military]], work as [[First responder|first-responder]] personnel, or pass a civics test.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Allison |first=Natalie |date=2023-05-10 |title=Vivek Ramaswamy wants to raise the voting age. Even his staff doesn't like the idea. |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/05/10/ramaswamy-raise-voting-age-00096266 |access-date=2023-05-12 |website=POLITICO |language=en}}</ref>

=== Venezuela ===
A request to lower the voting age to 16 was made during consideration of revisions to the [[Constitution of Venezuela]] in 2007. [[Cilia Flores]], president of the [[National Assembly of Venezuela|National Assembly]], announced that the Mixed Committee for Constitutional Reform had found the idea acceptable. Following approval in the legislature<ref>{{cite news|first=Matthew|last=Walter|title=Venezuela May Lower Voting Age, Add Gay Rights in Constitution|publisher=Bloomberg.com|date=11 October 2007|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aqg5jOxmM.Vg&refer=latin_america|access-date=13 October 2007}}</ref> the amendment formed part of the package of constitutional proposals, and was defeated in the [[2007 Venezuelan constitutional referendum|2007 referendum]].