Move to allow vote at age 16 gains backing

SACRAMENTO — Renee Revolorio-Keith, a 16-year-old Berkeley High School student, is no stranger to political fights. In a polished speech on the steps of the state Capitol, Revolorio-Keith said her activism is muted by her inability to bring change the democratic way — at the ballot box.

She’s among the students, lawmakers and youth groups who want 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in school board and community college district elections.

“We would be the first state in the nation to change our Constitution to empower young people to vote — people below the age of 18 who are affected by the very decisions being made by your school boards,” said Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego.

Supporters of ACA7 by Gonzalez say studies show that 16- and 17-year-olds are mature enough to make political decisions and that allowing the younger teens to cast ballots would increase the likelihood they will vote when they are 18 and above. But opponents argue that the legislation is little more than a

stunt by Democrats looking to boost their support in the state.

“If the idea is to let children vote on education policy, then let them vote for governor and the Legislature. That’s where all the policy and money decisions are made,” said Rob Stutzman, a GOP strategist. “It’s a false premise that education decisions are made at the local level. Why not then let 14- and 15-year-olds vote?”

Revolorio-Keith pointed to long-standing issues at her own school, Berkeley High, as an example of how the bill could influence school board races. She said students’ complaints of sexual harassment often are disregarded, and last year prompted a federal Office of Civil Rights investigation. If teens were constituents of school board members, it wouldn’t be so easy to dismiss their concerns, she said.

“We would be listened to instead of ignored,” RevolorioKeith said at a rally outside the Capitol on Thursday. “We would be able to demand change, not just sit idly by as our complaints time and again are swept under the rug.”

The legislation is similar to a proposal last year by San Francisco Supervisor John Avalos, who wanted to extend the right to vote to 16- and 17-year-olds in the city in all local elections, not just school board races.

Avalos tabled the proposal last year and said Saturday that the San Francisco Youth Commission is moving for- ward with the measure.

Matt Haney, president of the San Francisco Unified School District board, said he will introduce a resolution at a board meeting Feb. 23 to support the commission’s efforts.

“I think the people who are most impacted by decisions school boards make are the students, and I think it’s critical they have a voice in deciding who makes those decisions,” Haney said. “They are able to work, they are able to drive and pay taxes, but they have to sit out in our democracy. There is no test to show a certain level of maturity to vote. It’s a number we set as a society that I believe is too high.”

Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Founda- tion, a nonpartisan group that works to improve the election process, said she’s intrigued by the proposal, which she said could instill lifelong voting habits.

“We have a voter participation crisis in California,” Alexander said. “You look at the trends going forward and it’s easy to see the people who vote in California look less and less like the people who live in California. We need to think about how we are going to turn that around.”

Addressing that trend means engaging young people while they are still in school, Alexander said. But if the measure makes it to the ballot, she’s not sure how it will be received by voters.

“As Martin Luther King Jr. said, the people who have power rarely give it up voluntarily,” Alexander said. “People don’t want to give it to those they perceive as being less informed.”

While some Republicans have criticized the proposal as a ploy by Democrats and teachers unions to influence teens to vote their way, Alexander said she’s not so sure that would happen.

“It’s more likely to increase the number of independent voters,” she said. “Young people are more likely to register nonpartisan than they are to register as Democrats or Republicans. Plus, school board elections are nonpartisan.”