Opinion: 16 too young to vote? Maybe you’re too old

"I’d like to put an alternative view forward, and look at some of these arguments, with a view on why people over 65 should lose the right to vote."

• Shaz Reece is a former journalist who now works in the youth sector.

Recently, some “elderly” gentlemen at the Invercargill City Council decided to enlighten us by regurgitating soundbites about why 16-year-olds shouldn’t be allowed to vote.

Something about the “pReFrOnTaL cOrTex”.

I’ve seen a lot of arguments for and against lowering the voting age to 16, but none has made me so uncomfortable as these 60 to 80-year-old men speaking in this way about a generation with experiences so far from their own.

I have worked with young people for the past five years, many of whom are 16 and making some of the biggest decisions of their lives.

Five years isn’t a long time, but it’s long enough to know how incredibly capable our young people are.

These young people are often holding down jobs, looking after their younger siblings, and supporting their families – often while undertaking full time study to secure a better future for themselves.

With the unfortunate rise of misinformation and disinformation, it is incredibly easy to cherry-pick statistics and ignore evidence you disagree with – a familiar tactic used by those against lowering the voting age to 16, found here, here, here, here, and here.

I’d like to put an alternative view forward, and look at some of these arguments, with a view on why people over 65 should lose the right to vote:

1. Brain Development:

Certain areas of the brain start shrinking as we age. According to Harvard Health studies, our brains wear down over time, which affects the ability to encode new information. It is for this reason that people over the age of 65 are incapable of using the TV remote. It is too the reason they’re so averse to change. For example:

• They’re most likely to vote no to legalising marijuana.

• They’re most likely to oppose immigration.

• They’re less willing to spend money on education.

• They’re most likely to vote against gay marriage.

2. Life Experience

The world is not what it was when Baby Boomers were teenagers.

65 years ago, Auckland Harbour Bridge was being built. A couple of years later, the country had its first TV transmission. And following those grand milestones, we even decided to get rid of the death penalty.

These people were born and raised in a different world entirely. A world that is almost incomprehensible to me, let alone the generation that follows.

How can a generation with such vastly different life experience understand the world as it is, let alone vote on decisions that will impact the next 65 years?

3. Mental Capacity

It is a widely held belief that on your 18th birthday, you unlock the informed-decision-making portion in your brain, and with every birthday thereafter, you level up to become one step more intellectually superior. But this isn’t universally true.

There are many examples of people being mentally capable from a much younger age, and even more so of people being entirely incapable at all ages.

An article published by Biomed Central Pediatrics concluded that from the age of 12 “children may have the capacity to be decision-making competent,” while there are many people over the age of 18 who make misinformed, unreasonable, and ridiculously ignorant decisions (see: 2022 Wellington riots).

4. Susceptibility

Old people are gullible. They are extremely susceptible to online scams.

I mean, it’s not that unlikely to be contacted by a Nigerian prince who just needs your personal details so he can give you his fortune, right?

But it’s not just those unsecured links getting clicks from the old folks. They’re also much more likely to fall victim to Fake News, which is often targeted to scare them into casting a more conservative vote.

The First Man wasn’t in jail. 5G does not spread Covid-19. YOU DIDN’T WIN A CARAVAN, AUNTY JAN!

I could go on, but…

If you’re still here reading this hit piece on the elderly, you’re either having a laugh with me or you’re imagining burning me at the stake (like they did when you were younger).

For anyone interested in reading my references, you may see how a quick Google search can back up any old argument.

I may have even convinced some people that the elderly shouldn’t vote!

I don’t want that to happen, but I do want to see our young people given the opportunity to make their own decisions, to learn and grow with those decisions, just as we continue to do. I believe that youth should have the opportunity to vote at 16, after all, it’s their future at stake.

Many young people won’t vote, but that doesn’t mean we should exclude those who want to participate in the democratic process.

As an advocate for rangatahi, I can attest that there are many 16-year-olds more than capable of casting an informed vote.

Give them a chance to even the playing field; give them the option to vote.