VOTE16 SUMMIT EXPERIENCE

At this summit, many of the panelists rebutted the arguments against Vote16. One reason for the hesitancy towards youth voting is that some citizens feel that it would produce polarizing results, where youth are more likely to vote for the extreme left/right parties. However, this summit revealed that this is not the case. Youth are not a monolithic group, but rather have political opinions that range all over the spectrum. Additionally, skeptics of the movement are reluctant to support Vote16 because they feel that 16-yer-olds are not capable of making an informed vote. As I listened to the youth presenters, it became evident that they were more knowledgeable and passionate about civics than many adults, highlighting that age is not a measure of ability. Beyond this, a reoccurring message that I heard throughout the summit was that no one in the room has ever met a young person who doesn’t care about anything. So long as people feel passionate about an issue, they should be able to vote. In fact, the only qualification on voting is citizenship. In this way, cognition should never be a limitation on voting rights and there is no political belief that should disenfranchise anyone from the right to vote.

Further, I felt some hesitancy from a few youth audience members as well, regarding the impact that Vote16 will have on improving democracy. As I listened to the questions posed by young audience members, it became clear that Canada’s democracy faces a crisis of confidence, especially among youth, who are losing faith in governmental accountability. For example, an audience member asked, “what is the point of allowing youth to vote when politicians already fail to resolve the many global crises that ensue?” In other words, how would Vote16 improve democracy? In response, the youth panelists revealed that Vote16 may help to bridge this gap: it represents the very change that our democracy needs to reinvigorate the political participation of young people and to rectify the power imbalance that excludes youth from decision-making. In this way, Vote16 aligns with the adaptive nature of Canada’s democracy, which is designed to evolve over time to meet the changing needs of its citizens.