A left-leaning town in southern Vermont is taking up on Tuesday a referendum to extend the right to vote in local elections to teenagers as young as 16, but even if the measure passes it would still require the state legislature’s approval. The so-called “youth vote amendment” would lower the minimum voting age in Brattleboro, a town of about 12,000 people, to 16 from its current 18, the age minimum for state and federal elections. The amendment is part of slate of proposals being considered on Tuesday as part of Brattleboro’s annual town meeting.
The idea was put forward by Kurt Daims, a longtime activist in the town, who said lowering the voting age would boost voter turnout and extend rights to a “disenfranchised group.”
… If voters approve the voting age amendment, the town could become the second municipality in the United States to lower the voting age to 16, following Takoma Park, Maryland, in 2013.
Full Article: Vermont town seeks to lower voting age to 16, from 18 | Reuters.