Explain Why The Voting Age Should Be Lowered To 16
Nat Marshall draft notes for English course work 12th Jan
Should the age at which people gain the right to vote be lowered to 16?
The right to vote is a very important human right. It gives us an opportunity to participate in the way democratic countries are governed. It gives us the opportunity to change governments we feel are failing to represent us and ensure that government pays attention the citizens. It could be argued that the right to vote is the most effective way other rights such as free speech and the right to a fair trial are protected.
If we look at history a century ago most countries did not let women vote, and it took years of struggle for them to win political rights. Fifty years ago South Africa and some states …show more content…
in the USA did not allow black people to vote. Now every democracy in the World believes that all adult should have the right to vote.
In the majority of democratic countries the definition of an adult for voting purposes is 18.
In approximately 142 countries 18 is the age at which you are allowed to vote..
Some countries including Taiwan and Japan do not allow young people the right to vote until they are 21. But in countries the voting age is younger.For example in Korea, Sudan and Indonesia it is 17, in Brazil, Cuba and Nicaragua it is 16, and in Iran it is as low as 15.In other democracies such as the UK, USA and Australia there are growing movements to lower the voting age to 16.
The reasons the age should be are reduced can be broken down in to five main points.
At 16 we are mature enough to make important decisions including who to vote for in local and general elections.Our bodies are fully formed,we have been educated for 12 years, and some of us have experience of working as well as attending school. All of this helps use develop political views and we should be allowed to put these across at election time. There is no significant or noticeable difference between a 16 year old and someone who is 18 I would say lots of us 16 year olds are as if not are more sensible than some 20 year …show more content…
olds.
At 16 year we have other rights. For example, in many countries we have the right to leave school and leave home, the rights to have sex, marry and have children. It doesn't make sense to have different ages for different rights. If young people are considered old enough to make important choices about their own future, why can’t we have a say in deciding the future of our country?
Some16 year olds have part time and or holiday jobs and so some pay tax on what they earn.
Currently we are not allowed to have a say on how the government spends our money or in how much tax they take from us. Along side this the government as set policies on things such as the minimum wages and the number of works hours people can work and if young people are old enough to have jobs we should be able to have our say in these areas too.
It is important in a democracy to include as wide a range of opinions as possible. The idea of representation by elected MPs and local councillors means that as many different views as possible should be heard at election time. Teenagers have their own interests and views which are currently not represented. This leads to feeling of being unvalued by society and a lose of trust in the way the country is governed.
There is a problem of apathy and a lack of interest in politics and this is evident in low turnouts on polling day. Although young people are taught citizenship at school, we don’t get a chance to put this knowledge into practice for many years as national elections are usually only held every four years or so, many people have to wait until they are 20 or 21 before their first chance to cast an important
vote.
Giving the vote to teenagers would force politicians to take us seriously. A big area that MPs would need to consider and take our views seriously on would be education.
We 16 year olds are well-educated and can express informed opinions. But at the moment are views are ignored by those in power.
Should the age at which people gain the right to vote be lowered to 16?
The right to vote is a very important human right. It gives us an opportunity to participate in the way democratic countries are governed. It gives us the opportunity to change governments we feel are failing to represent us and ensure that government pays attention the citizens. It could be argued that the right to vote is the most effective way other rights such as free speech and the right to a fair trial are protected.
If we look at history a century ago most countries did not let women vote, and it took years of struggle for them to win political rights. Fifty years ago South Africa and some states …show more content…
in the USA did not allow black people to vote. Now every democracy in the World believes that all adult should have the right to vote.
In the majority of democratic countries the definition of an adult for voting purposes is 18.
In approximately 142 countries 18 is the age at which you are allowed to vote..
Some countries including Taiwan and Japan do not allow young people the right to vote until they are 21. But in countries the voting age is younger.For example in Korea, Sudan and Indonesia it is 17, in Brazil, Cuba and Nicaragua it is 16, and in Iran it is as low as 15.In other democracies such as the UK, USA and Australia there are growing movements to lower the voting age to 16.
The reasons the age should be are reduced can be broken down in to five main points.
At 16 we are mature enough to make important decisions including who to vote for in local and general elections.Our bodies are fully formed,we have been educated for 12 years, and some of us have experience of working as well as attending school. All of this helps use develop political views and we should be allowed to put these across at election time. There is no significant or noticeable difference between a 16 year old and someone who is 18 I would say lots of us 16 year olds are as if not are more sensible than some 20 year …show more content…
olds.
At 16 year we have other rights. For example, in many countries we have the right to leave school and leave home, the rights to have sex, marry and have children. It doesn't make sense to have different ages for different rights. If young people are considered old enough to make important choices about their own future, why can’t we have a say in deciding the future of our country?
Some16 year olds have part time and or holiday jobs and so some pay tax on what they earn.
Currently we are not allowed to have a say on how the government spends our money or in how much tax they take from us. Along side this the government as set policies on things such as the minimum wages and the number of works hours people can work and if young people are old enough to have jobs we should be able to have our say in these areas too.
It is important in a democracy to include as wide a range of opinions as possible. The idea of representation by elected MPs and local councillors means that as many different views as possible should be heard at election time. Teenagers have their own interests and views which are currently not represented. This leads to feeling of being unvalued by society and a lose of trust in the way the country is governed.
There is a problem of apathy and a lack of interest in politics and this is evident in low turnouts on polling day. Although young people are taught citizenship at school, we don’t get a chance to put this knowledge into practice for many years as national elections are usually only held every four years or so, many people have to wait until they are 20 or 21 before their first chance to cast an important
vote.
Giving the vote to teenagers would force politicians to take us seriously. A big area that MPs would need to consider and take our views seriously on would be education.
We 16 year olds are well-educated and can express informed opinions. But at the moment are views are ignored by those in power.