Would it be better if the voting age was lowered to thirteen? essay sample

Lowering the voting age is constantly on the agenda even if it is not quite a popular measure. With every year, the number of the eligible electorate participating in the elections only decreases. In the US presidential elections 2016, the voter turnout has not reached 60 percent. Nearly 95 million of Americans chose not to vote at all, which is an enormous figure. Lowering of the voting age may possibly increase the voter turnout as young people tend to be active, ambitious, and thirsty for information. While older citizens give up on trusting politicians and become disillusioned about their future, young people have the entire life ahead and strive to participate in creating their future.

Opponents of decreasing the voting age claim that teenagers are not responsible enough to vote and able to research and make a profound research on the candidates. These claims seem quite reasonable, however, the opponents of lowering voting age did not take into account one more important fact. There is no evidence that the majority of adults vote responsibly. They either give their vote for the party which is traditionally favored in their state or base on a simple like-dislike kind of judgment. Besides, elder voters may have prejudice to some candidates based on the history of their party. Anyway, nearly half of the adult Americans did not vote in the last elections, which is a clear insult to their responsibility.

Perhaps, it is time to make way for the younger generation of voters to compensate the gaps made by their parents. Lowering the voting age to 13 may be too radical so it would be best if teenagers start voting at 16.