And I suppose the fact that the Tories oppose it is not partisan at all :unsure:

 

You'd expect them to *support* something that could only help their opponents? :wacko:

Oh god sake. Lower it to 16! Expand the franchise. Someone at 15 who can't vote on an election by ONE DAY can vote at the next, assuming a 5 year gov, at 21. Someone at 18 would have to wait until 23. It has a knock on effect.

Oh god sake. Lower it to 16! Expand the franchise. Someone at 15 who can't vote on an election by ONE DAY can vote at the next, assuming a 5 year gov, at 21. Someone at 18 would have to wait until 23

 

I was 2 months too young to vote in 1983 - I got over it. ;)

It's an injustice.

As someone who was very into politics when I was 16, it was annoying that I had to wait until I was 21 to vote in a General Election. If 16 had been the voting age then I could have voted in the 2005 GE. It was annoying not being able to vote then when some people 18 and over just wouldn’t bother voting.

 

It would also have been nice to have voted in a GE that didn’t result in a Tory prime minister.

As someone who was very into politics when I was 16, it was annoying that I had to wait until I was 21 to vote in a General Election. If 16 had been the voting age then I could have voted in the 2005 GE. It was annoying not being able to vote then when some people 18 and over just wouldn’t bother voting.

 

It would also have been nice to have voted in a GE that didn’t result in a Tory prime minister.

I was 36 when I first voted in an election that didn't result in a Tory PM :(

You'd expect them to *support* something that could only help their opponents? :wacko:

So you agree that they are being partisan. Why is that OK for the Tories, but not for anyone else?

I was 36 when I first voted in an election that didn't result in a Tory PM :(

 

And at 31 right now, I could be in the same boat if things don’t work out in a few weeks!

I expect I might be a similar age when it happens :( I suspect most people on this forum haven't "won" an election yet and it really starts to get to you. The younger people get to vote, the more likely it is that they end up on the winning side in our politics at an earlier age. Now, flawed voting system aside and what values of winning actually mean, I reckon it does a lot for voter apathy amongst the young for future elections if they feel their vote has ended up mattering. That's why there is such a push amongst engaged people every election to ensure that the youth vote is not wasted and lost to older adults who've gone through their own generation of apathy and are now voting every time.

 

And screw partisanship, it doesn't matter that younger voters are likelier to vote Labour, we should have more people involved in the political process. And then further, older people are more likely as a group to be insulated from bad political decisions, younger people are not as likely to. They should have a chance to have their say.

It's an injustice.

 

:huh: That's a new one on me - when did it become a crime to not let under-18's vote? :wacko:

 

I was 36 when I first voted in an election that didn't result in a Tory PM :(

 

I was 32 - so what?

 

So you agree that they are being partisan. Why is that OK for the Tories, but not for anyone else?

 

I was not excusing partisanship, only pointing it out.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-77...-elections.html

 

Welsh Assembly votes to allow foreign nationals as well as 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in their next elections

 

Welsh Assembly passes law to allow foreigners to vote in next elections in Wales

Children aged 16 and 17 will also be allowed to vote for the first time in 2021

Bill was backed by Labour, Plaid Cymru and ministers in the Welsh government

In another forum I read, someone asked whether their should be an *upper* limit to voting age (admittedly their question may have been a bit tongue-in-cheek), but does anyone here seriously think there should be such an upper limit, and if so, what should it be?

In another forum I read, someone asked whether their should be an *upper* limit to voting age (admittedly their question may have been a bit tongue-in-cheek), but does anyone here seriously think there should be such an upper limit, and if so, what should it be?

 

No I don't think there should be an upper limit.

There shouldn’t be an upper age limit for elections.

 

 

A test to weed out people regurgitating propaganda without objective thought however. :thinking:

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-77...-elections.html

 

Welsh Assembly votes to allow foreign nationals as well as 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in their next elections

 

Welsh Assembly passes law to allow foreigners to vote in next elections in Wales

Children aged 16 and 17 will also be allowed to vote for the first time in 2021

Bill was backed by Labour, Plaid Cymru and ministers in the Welsh government

Fully support this.

There shouldn’t be an upper age limit for elections.

A test to weed out people regurgitating propaganda without objective thought however. :thinking:

 

Good luck in determining that. :P

 

On a related subject, should there be some sort of test/exam to determine whether people are competent to vote?

 

[A position I strongly oppose, personally]

 

Fully support this.

 

I was surprised that no-one commented on it when I first posted it.

Edited January 7, 20205 yr by vidcapper

So the Labour Party are proposing extending the voting franchise to 16 and 17 year olds in the whole UK if elected.

 

What do you think? Is this a good idea?

 

The voting age was lowered to 16 in Scotland for Scottish and local government elections in June 2015 following the independence referendum and then in Wales (Senedd and local elections) in 2020. The UK was one of the first democracies to lower the age of voting to 18 in November 1969, yet now we have this divide between Scotland, Wales and the rest of the UK.

 

Personally I am strongly for this measure being adopted UK wide- political decisions do impact this age group, many of these people are already passionate and well informed and have the money and responsibility (ie. expected to contribute tax if earning enough) that justify them having a say in how our society and country is governed should they wish to do so, and recent examples of the Scottish independence referendum show that 16/17 year olds do care passionately enough to justify having the vote. By doing this we would show enormous trust and respect to those in this age group and perhaps drive further engagement with politics. I think that this shouldn't be adopted without any other measures, there should be more time spent in school educating on politics/democracy and engaging with young people on the responsibility that comes with having the vote.

I was 36 when I first voted in an election that didn't result in a Tory PM :(

 

 

And at 31 right now, I could be in the same boat if things don’t work out in a few weeks!

 

So should things go to plan this time, I will be just short of 36 when this happens :lol:

 

I’m definitely still for lowering the voting age. I’m not quite sure why anyone would be so against it.

I think I would be in favour of this now, but I still think political education should be given more attention in schools and colleges for this age group. Maybe I'm biased as I work with them, but the stereotype that all young people are accepting and inclusive isn't really true, they can be very immature and disengaged, some of the day to day things you hear are worrying and they would be susceptible to rage-bait. But of course as we've seen, so are some voting age adults and I wouldn't want to silence the voices of those 16 and 17 year olds that have a real interest in politics.

I don't like the idea. Just seems unnecessary. Also the main arguments I hear for it are “its their future” its everybodies future but 10 yr olds cant vote and they only have to wait a small amount of time before they can vote forever, it'll still be their future then. Just seems like political opportunitism basically if a party thinks it'll favour them they push it. But it has no real need for it. At 16 I knew almost nothing about politics

I don't like the idea. Just seems unnecessary. Also the main arguments I hear for it are “its their future” its everybodies future but 10 yr olds cant vote and they only have to wait a small amount of time before they can vote forever, it'll still be their future then. Just seems like political opportunitism basically if a party thinks it'll favour them they push it. But it has no real need for it. At 16 I knew almost nothing about politics

 

And you were automatically an expert on politics when the clock struck midnight for your 18th birthday?