Group of House Dems Pushes to Amend Constitution So 16-Year-Olds Can Vote
More than just a dozen House Democrats This week, a Constitution amendment was proposed to allow 16-year olds to vote. It is believed that this amendment will make it easier for left-leaning policies to be enacted such as gun control and environmental measures.
Grace Meng, a Democratic Rep from New York, proposed a resolution to eliminate the 26th Amendment of the Constitution. It allows U.S citizens to vote if at least 18 years old. This resolution would replace it with new language that reads: “The right of citizens of the United States, who are sixteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.”
Meng hadn’t released a statement on her proposal by early Thursday afternoon. However, she did release a statement at the last Congress, which indicated her belief that lowering voting age by Modifying the Constitution It would allow younger people to have input on many of the Democratic positions.
Grace Meng (D-N.Y.) is leading the charge to get Democrats to amend the Constitution so that 16- and 17 year-olds can vote.
“Our young people, including 16- and 17-year-olds, continue to fight and advocate for so many issues that they are passionate about from gun safety to the climate crisis,” She spoke. “They have been tremendously engaged on policies affecting their lives and their futures.”
When Democrats controlled the elections Last Congress, they did nothing to advance Meng’s proposal. Groups that supported the idea a lower voting threshold also said they liked the idea as it would help left-leaning causes.
For example, Vote16USA, which backed Meng’s idea in the last Congress, this week had a message up on its site that said, “Lower the voting age, the planet depends on it.”
The Next Up Action Fund was another supporter. “16- and 17-year-olds are engaged, smart, and capable of casting informed votes…”
Democrats seek to amend the Constitution in order to lower the voting age. This is no easy task with a GOP-led House.
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March 2022 saw 125 Democrats vote in favor of an amend to lower the voting age from 16 to 16. However, it wasn’t enough for the amendment to be approved. Only one Republican voted in opposition.
The Youth Voting Rights Act was also introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Nikema Williams(D-Ga.). This bill, too, failed to pass in both the Democrat-led House or Senate. Although it didn’t alter the voting age, it would have allowed 16 and 17-year olds to register to vote in order to be eligible to vote once they turn 18.
The bill was supported also by Democrats who stressed the importance to get younger voters to the polls in support of issues backed Democrats.
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“It’s our younger generation that will face the long-term consequences of our political challenges – like stymied action on climate change, gun violence, and reproductive rights,” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse D-R.I. “We need to defend their right to vote.”
Meng’s latest proposal to amend the Constitution was cosponsored by 11 House Democrats, including Squad members Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.
Three of the four members are from the “Squad” Support the resolution to lower voting age: Reps. Tlaib and Ocasio Cortez, Pressley (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
To amend the Constitution, the House and Senate must pass the resolution with a majority vote and then it must be ratified by three-fourths state legislatures.
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The 26th Amendment reduced the voting age to 21 and was ratified by Congress in 1971. It was partly a result of pressure from Vietnam War which saw many teenagers being drafted to fight overseas, even though they couldn’t vote.
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