Express & Star

POLL: Express & Star readers against the idea of lowering voting age

To mark the 50th anniversary of the day the voting age was lowered, Express & Star readers have had their say on whether it should be lowered again.

Published
Readers against giving 16 and 17-year-olds the chance to vote.

Five decades since Harold Wilson's government lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 in 1969, a number of campaigners have been calling for another change in the law, lowering the voting age to 16.

A poll by the Express & Star found that the vast majority of readers would not back the idea of giving 16 and 17-year-olds the chance to vote.

Of the 713 readers who took part in the poll, an overwhelming majority of 79 per cent said that they did not want the voting age lowered again, compared to the 21 per cent that do.

This means that more than 560 of the 713 that were asked do not want 16 and 17-year-olds to be able to vote.

Reflecting the huge swing in the poll results, most Facebook comments on the poll were against the idea of lowering the voting age.

Facebook user Darren Paul Ward said: "Absolutely not, seeing as this generation of snowflakes are hellbent on unravelling everything our elders fought to keeps for us.

"16-18-year-olds now in general aren't capable of tying their laces let alone voting!"

Another Facebook user called Bob said: "UN defines 16-17 year olds as 'children'. They can't drink alcohol, buy cigarettes or fireworks (not even sparklers), need permission to marry, cannot serve in the armed forces in a combat zone plus other stuff I have probably forgot about.

"Add to that the vast majority I know (I am a secondary school teacher teaching up to age 19) would vote for the person with the trendiest trainers.

"Children are idealistic, naive and gullible. The exact qualities that some politicians dream of in their constituents."

Kaylee Walker said: "I don't agree with it being put back to 21 as suggested by some. If you're old enough to get married and have a mortgage then you should be old enough to vote. 18 is enough. 16 are still classed as minors."