More than a dozen high schoolers gathered in Lower Manhattan in front of the Board of Elections (BOE) alongside Assembly members Robert Carroll (D-Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Kensington) and Jo Anne Simon (D-Downtown Brooklyn, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill) yesterday to advocate for the passage of the Young Voter Act yesterday.
The bill would lower the voting age to 17 for state and local elections (A.6839/A.6840). Carroll, the prime sponsor of the bill, organized the rally on the day before the general election to draw attention to the characteristically abysmal voter turnout in New York State.
Carroll believes that starting civic education and good voter habits early in a person’s life can lead to better voter awareness and attendance in the future.
“New York State has some of the worst voting laws in the nation and we are consistently between 41st and 49th in the country in voter turnout. As a state, we must do more to make it easier to vote. If someone does not become an active voter by the time they are 25 then they’re likely to never become an active voter. Lowering the vote age to 17 will encourage young people to get into the habit of voting while still living at home in a familiar environment, before they go off to College or elsewhere,” said Carroll.
The legislation, which Carroll introduced in March also includes a requirement that New York high school students receive at least eight hours of civics instruction, and that on or before their 17th birthday, students be handed a voter registration form.
Simon echoed these sentiments, citing low voter turnout in last November’s Presidential election a highlight of the consequences of a lack of voting awareness.
“We want to harness this enthusiasm and this eagerness to participate in our civic life. What do people complain about all the time: low voter turnout. We elect people with less than half of the voters in the United States voting and that is a disgrace. We should not be in that position, we should have everyone voting that can vote. This will do more than anything else, get people in the habit of voting, encourage people to vote. The habits you create as a young person are the habits you keep with you for a lifetime,” said Simon.
Dozens of high school students from around New York City went to Albany to lobby legislators on the bill’s behalf during the last legislative session.
Ilana Cohen, 17, a member of the Youth Progressive Policy Group, a grassroots organization made up of NYC high school students supporting the bill, was quick to note that young people want a chance to engage in local government and make their voices heard.
“The Young Voter Act is about engaging a young populace, about fostering a civically engaged participating electorate,” said Cohen. “Through the legislation, we not only encourage young people to engage in local democracy but to encourage their family members, friends and other people around them to turn out. In New York State there is no excuse for low voter turnout and this legislation seeks to combat that.”
Currently, the voting age of 18 is the law in all 50 states. New York’s age of franchise has been 18 since the passage of the 26th Amendment in 1971. Some states allow persons age 17 to vote in primary elections if they will be 18 by the date of the general election.
“Seventeen-year-old New Yorkers contribute to their communities. They hold jobs. They pay taxes. They should be full participants in our democracy,” added Carroll.
