No one with more skin in game than youth

It is time to lower voting age to 16, Andrew Weaver says.

Nearly two decades after Columbine, the United States may finally get the gun-control measures that survivors from Sandy Hook to Georgia Tech have long called for. The heroic survivors of the Parkland school shooting have managed to galvanize support for gun control to record levels. Due to their voices, 72 per cent of Americans now support stricter gun control laws, compared to just 50 per cent after the October Las Vegas shooting.

The thoughtful, well-organized leadership displayed by the Parkland students demonstrates the incredible value of their participation in the U.S. democracy. As it renews the push to lower the voting age to 16, it is time B.C. considered making the change as well.

As pointed out in a recent New York Times article, psychological research shows that the cognitive skills required to make calm, logically informed decisions, known as “cold” cognition, are firmly in place by age 16. Neuroimaging studies confirm that the brain systems necessary for cold cognition — the type of cognition used in the voting booth — are mature by mid-adolescence. While opponents of lowering the voting age claim that the brain is not fully developed until people reach their early 20s, it is actually “hot” cognition, or the ability to self-regulate when making decisions under emotional duress, that continues to develop into those years.

Young citizens of B.C. are old enough to drive, pay taxes and sign up for the military. They are also the leaders of tomorrow. They should have a say in the direction we are heading, as they will inherit what we leave behind.

B.C. would be far from the first jurisdiction to make this change. 16 year-olds have been able to vote in Scotland since 2015, Argentina since 2012, Austria since 2010 and Brazil since 1988. Jurisdictions like Malta and Takoma Park, Md., have lowered the voting age for local elections.

There is no evidence that lowering the voting age has had negative ramifications for these democracies. On the contrary, there is much evidence to suggest that the earlier a voter casts their first ballot, the more likely they are to develop voting as a habit throughout their life. Research has found that newly enfranchised young Scots show substantially higher levels of engagement through voting and other forms of political participation, are engaged with a greater range of information about politics and reflect greater levels of political efficacy.

Since the breadth of school subject matter is greater at the secondary level, young people are more likely to be engaged in political, social or historical studies. And because they are likely to have lived in their community for a longer period of time, rather than having recently moved for post-secondary education or for work, they tend to feel more rooted in it. They are more likely to share a community with longtime friends and family, and thus to share a common frame of reference for discussing how political issues will impact them.

Indeed, one of Parkland’s most engaged students, David Hogg, drew on his recent experiences in school for his response to the shooting. Hogg, who interviewed students sheltered in a closet during the shooting, was a participant in Marjory Stoneman Douglas’ TV production program and recently learned about the Pentagon Papers and the role of journalism being the so-called fourth check on government.

The strength of the Parkland students’ movement is deeply rooted in their sense of community. They are uniquely invested in the difference gun-control legislation would have made in their lives. This is precisely how our democracy should function: highly engaged citizens with skin in the game holding their elected representatives to account. There is no one with more skin in the game than youth. From climate change to the intergenerational wealth gap exacerbated by our housing crisis, young British Columbians will feel the effects of politicians’ decisions more than their older counterparts.

That’s why this week, I am introducing legislation for the third time that would lower the voting age to 16. This provides B.C. with a chance to join dozens of other jurisdictions in making this important change. I invite all British Columbians to join me in calling for this important change so that we can strengthen our democracy for those who it impacts most.

Skills required to make calm, logically informed decisions ... are firmly in place by age 16.