Our country has a problem with low voter turnout, but giving 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote could help change that. Lowering the voting age has increased youth voter turnout in other countries, and it can do the same here.

 

In Scotland's first election after lowering the voting age, more than 75% of 16 and 17-year-olds voted compared to only around 50% of 18-24 year-olds.* This makes sense as many young people today are aware of social and political issues affecting them. Young people know how to vote and want to vote when given the opportunity.

 

On top of this, reports showed a significant follow-through effect on voter turnout among young people who were allowed to vote in their first election at ages 16 or 17.* Seven years after the initial lowering of the voting age in Scotland, young people who could vote at 16 were more likely to turn out to vote again in the next election than people first voted at 18. This suggests voting at 16 has a lasting positive effect on long-term voter turnout as voters get older.

 

Once you learn how to vote and instil the habit of voting it is more likely that you will continue to vote for the rest of your life. Lowering the voting age will not only increase youth voter turnout, but the overall goal of greater participation overtime can be achieved when we lower the voting age.

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*Scottish Independence Referendum Report, December 2014

**Study of Votes at 16 in Scotland 2014–2021 by Jan Eichhorn and Christine Hübner