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Why the voting age should be lowered to 16

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  • Tommy Peto

    (University of Oxford, UK)

Abstract

This article examines whether the voting age should be lowered to 16. The dominant view in the literature is that 16-year-olds in the United Kingdom are not politically mature enough to vote since they lack political knowledge, political interest and stable political preferences (Chan and Clayton, 2006). I reject this conclusion and instead argue that the voting age should be lowered to 16. First, I look at Chan and Clayton’s empirical claims and show that these features of 16- and 17-year-olds are in fact created by exclusionary social practices and therefore that these features cannot be used to justify their exclusion from the vote. Second, I evaluate preliminary evidence from Austria which suggests that 16- and 17-year-olds, when actually given the vote, are politically mature. Third, I show that, on a balance of harms, considering that some 16- and 17-year-olds are mature, we still should lower the voting age even if some 16- and 17-year-olds are not politically mature. I conclude that the voting age should be lowered to (at least) 16.

Suggested Citation

  • Tommy Peto, 2018. "Why the voting age should be lowered to 16," Politics, Philosophy & Economics, , vol. 17(3), pages 277-297, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:pophec:v:17:y:2018:i:3:p:277-297
    DOI: 10.1177/1470594X17705651
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Gerber, Alan S. & Green, Donald P., 2000. "The Effects of Canvassing, Telephone Calls, and Direct Mail on Voter Turnout: A Field Experiment," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 94(3), pages 653-663, September.
    2. Tak Wing Chan & Matthew Clayton, 2006. "Should the Voting Age be Lowered to Sixteen? Normative and Empirical Considerations," Political Studies, Political Studies Association, vol. 54(3), pages 533-558, October.
    3. Strate, John M. & Parrish, Charles J. & Elder, Charles D. & Ford, Coit, 1989. "Life Span Civic Development and Voting Participation," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 83(2), pages 443-464, June.
    4. Alan Gerber & Donald Green, 2000. "The effects of canvassing, direct mail, and telephone contact on voter turnout: A field experiment," Natural Field Experiments 00248, The Field Experiments Website.
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