Should 18 Year Olds Be Able To Vote?

In the prime of the Vietnam War, most Americans realized the confusing double standard in sending 18-year-old soldiers to fight and then later on die in combat for their country at the same time they weren’t allowed to vote. If 18 year olds are being drafted into war and fight for their country, wouldn’t you question their inability to vote? For whatever reason the government thinks 18 year olds are responsible and mature enough to carry high powered assault rifles in war, yet, they don’t think they are responsible enough to vote for a new president. Before the passing of the 26th Amendment (the fastest amendment to be ratified in U.S. history) in 1971, the age 21 was the minimum voting age in most of the states. Congress lowered the nationwide voting age to 18 as a retaliation to calm the intense and passionate debate about the Vietnam War. Many people felt that kids who were old enough to be drafted into the war should also be able to vote. Some people may ask why should 18 be the legal age for

Mitchell played a big role in the 1970’s with dealing with lowering the voting age. The Supreme Court held, with great disagreement, that the federal 18-year-old voting age requirement is valid for national elections, but not for State or local elections. The decision in Mitchell may have looked like a victory for the States, but it actually left them with a serious potential problem. Because the Supreme Court upheld the lowered national voting age in federal elections but not in State elections, States were faced with the complexity and expense of keeping track of who was allowed to vote in various elections. For example, a nineteen-year-old might be allowed to vote for President and Vice President but not for State officials who were up for election at the same time. In 1971, at the longing of the States, Congress supported a proposed constitutional amendment setting a stable national voting age of eighteen in all elections. The states quickly ratified