Unit 1: Should YOU Have the Right to Vote?
Overview
Since 1971, when the Twenty-sixth Amendment was ratified, the minimum voting age in the
United States has been 18, an age qualification that many other countries also use. Is there a
good reason for drawing the line at 18, or should younger citizens also have the vote? That
question is being debated not only around the United States, but around the world as well. In
this unit, you will have the opportunity to explore a proposed federal law extending the right
to vote to persons 16 years of age and older.
Throughout U.S. history, changes in voting rights have come about through constitutional
amendment, litigation, and state and federal law. Because lowering the voting age by two
years does not represent a fundamental structural change in voting rights, this unit focuses
on passing a federal law. This is a straightforward approach that would ensure equal
treatment for people in all states. In Katzenbach v. Morgan (1966), the U.S. Supreme Court
ruled that Congress had the constitutional authority to pass legislation related to voting if
necessary to “secure Fourteenth Amendment guarantees” (equal protection).
Focus Question

Should Congress pass a law to extend the right to vote to persons 16 years of age and
older?
Objectives




Identify reasons for using certain criteria to define the right to vote.
Describe examples of the evolution of voting rights in U.S. history.
Present arguments for and against a federal law extending the right to vote to persons 16
years of age and older.
Develop a plan for influencing public opinion and policymakers on behalf of their own
ideas regarding lowering the voting age to 16.
Materials
1A: Activity: Considering Restrictions on Voting
1B: Handout: What Restrictions on Voting Would You Support?
1C: Activity: Examining Historical Case Studies
1D: Handout: Case Studies
1E: Activity: Analyzing Arguments for and against Lowering the Voting Age
1F: Reading: What Should the Minimum Voting Age Be?
1G: Activity: Planning a Campaign on the Focus Question
1H: Handout: Advocacy Campaign Guidelines
1I: Handout: Tips for Creating an Advocacy Campaign
Lowering the Voting Age: Selected Resources
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1A: Activity: Considering Restrictions on Voting
Objective
Working in small groups, students consider what restrictions they would place on voting;
during discussion of the restrictions they support, the unit focus question is presented.
Procedures

Ask students: Did you vote in the 2012 election? For students who answer “no,” ask
them to explain why. Some students will likely say their age or citizenship status
prevented them from voting (Note: You may wish to clarify that students need not “out”
themselves as unauthorized immigrants; they can simply share that they are not citizens.)
Some students who are 18 and citizens might say they were not registered to vote or
chose not to vote for a variety of reasons. Record the answers given on the board.

Point out that some of the reasons students give illustrate restrictions on the right to vote.
Over the course of U.S. history, there have been many different restrictions placed on the
right. In this activity, students are going to have the chance to decide what restrictions
they would place on voting if they were in charge of deciding who can vote and who can’t.

Organize students into groups of three or four. Give each group a copy of Handout 1B.
Explain that they are to discuss each of the categories and decide if they would restrict
voting based on that category. If so, they should specify how they would restrict voting;
for example, if they would restrict voting by age, what would they set as the minimum
voting age? For each restriction they decide to place on voting, they should give at least
one reason.

Poll the class to see which categories a majority of the groups would use as the basis for
restricting voting. Discuss the results of the poll, focusing on why some categories are
good reasons for restrictions and others are suspect. Discuss the age category last,
drawing out students’ ideas about why age restrictions are a good idea and what they see
as the appropriate minimum age for voting.

Explain to students that, while the minimum voting age is currently 18, it has not always
been the case and will not necessarily be the case in the future. In this unit, students are
going to have the opportunity to consider whether it is time for a change. Introduce the
focus question: Should Congress pass a law to extend the right to vote to persons 16 years
of age and older? Take a quick poll of students’ initial opinions on the question and
record the results on the board.
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1B: Handout: What Restrictions on Voting Would You Support?
Directions: With the members of your group, consider whether voting should be restricted
based on the categories listed below. If you support restriction, give a reason for your
decision and describe the restriction you would place on voting. One example is provided.
Category
Restrict
Voting?
Yes/No
Explain Your Reason
Restriction You Would
Place
No
Race has nothing to do
with your ability to vote
None
Example:
Race
Age
Citizenship
Criminal status
(felon or ex-felon)
Education
Mental competence
Registration
Sex
Wealth
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1C: Activity: Examining Historical Case Studies
Objective
Having identified their initial views on the unit focus question, students examine two
historical case studies: (1) women’s suffrage, which was first granted in selected states and
then, under intense pressure from activists, was guaranteed nationwide through an
amendment to the U.S. Constitution and (2) the Voting Rights Act, which the federal
government enacted, again under pressure from activists, to enforce voting rights of African
Americans in states that were preventing them from voting.
Procedure
Point out that, while today most Americans see votes for women and other groups once
banned from voting as basic justice, at the time these groups gained the vote, many people
felt differently. Supporters of expanding the vote have worked incredibly hard to achieve
change. They have also used different approaches to achieving change. Today, students will
look at two different approaches to expanding voting rights, one used to gain the vote for
women, the other to ensure that voting rights for African Americans would not be blocked by
state and local officials.
 Organize students into four groups. Two groups will examine the women’s suffrage
case study, while two consider the case study on the Voting Rights Act. Distribute
Handout 1D to each group, along with the appropriate case study (1D:1 for women’s
suffrage, 1D:2 for the Voting Rights Act). Go over the directions with students, noting
that there are two reporting tasks for each case study: (1) presenting a timeline of key
events related to your case study and (2) explaining what the case study illustrates
about the process of expanding voting rights. Each group will do just one of these
tasks. You may wish to make the reporting assignments at this point or wait until after
students have read and discussed the case study before making the assignments.

When students have finished their preparation, have the groups present their findings.

Use the following questions to debrief the activity:
o How are the two cases similar? (Both efforts took a long time and required
extraordinary effort on the part of activists. Both involved state and federal
governments, and both eventually involved a solution at the federal level.)
o How are the two cases different? (The issue of women’s suffrage was settled with a
constitutional amendment, while several constitutional amendments were insufficient to
ensure that African Americans would enjoy the right to vote. Federal legislation was
also required. In the case of women’s suffrage, some states led the way in granting
women the right to vote. In the case of the Voting Rights Act, states were lagging behind
in terms of ensuring African Americans’ right to vote.)
o What can we apply from the case studies to our examination of the focus
question? (The process of extending the vote to 16- and 17-year-olds may take time
and require extraordinary effort. Federal action, whether a law or a constitutional
amendment, may be the best way to ensure that all young people in this age category
win the right to vote.)
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1D: Handout: Case Studies
Directions: Read the case study assigned to your group. Then discuss the case study questions.
After you have discussed the case study, prepare for the reporting task assigned to your group.
Case Study Questions:

At what level of government did this effort begin?

What roles did state and federal government play in this case study?

What tools (laws, constitutional amendments, court cases) were used to extend the vote in
this case study?

How important were activists in this case study?

Both case studies involve advocacy over a long period of time. Why do you think the process
of extending the vote in your case study took so long?
Reporting Tasks:
Your teacher will ask you to prepare for one of these tasks:

Present a timeline of key events related to your case study.

Explain what the case study illustrates about the process of expanding voting rights.
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1D:1: Case Study: Women’s Suffrage in the United States
Some people say the fight for women’s suffrage began when Abigail Adams wrote the following
in a letter to her husband in March 1776:
. . . in the new Code of Laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make I desire
you would Remember the Ladies and be more generous and favourable to them than your
ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the Husbands. Remember all
Men would be tyrants if they could. If perticuliar care and attention is not paid to the Laidies
we are determined to foment a Rebelion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in
which we have no voice, or Representation.
The Framers did not respond favorably, and it was not until 1848 that the first women’s rights
convention was held. That convention, held in Seneca Falls, New York, included the right to vote
in its list of resolutions. The idea was controversial, however, as some people at the convention
argued that it should be removed.
After the Civil War, several organizations devoted to suffrage were formed. In 1869, women were
given the vote in the new territory of Wyoming; when Wyoming became a state in 1890, it
became the first state in
which women could vote.
Meanwhile, women were
going to court, claiming that
the Fourteenth Amendment
gave women the right to
vote. They lost their cases.
So, too, did Susan B.
Anthony, who was charged
and convicted of a crime for
voting in the election of
1872.
The first constitutional
amendment giving women
the right to vote was
introduced in the U.S.
Congress in 1878. It was
unsuccessful. The
advocates for women’s
suffrage focused mostly on
changing state and local law.
They achieved some
successes. Their greatest
victory came in 1917, when New York gave women the right to vote. While most of the Western
states allowed women to vote, east of the Mississippi, only New York and Michigan gave women
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full suffrage. The rest of the country was a patchwork. Some states did not allow women to vote
under any circumstances. Some allowed women to vote in primaries. In some states, women
could vote only in selected cities. Other states allowed women to vote in primaries or
presidential elections—but not other elections.
In 1913, two young activists, Alice Paul and
Lucy Burns, organized the Congressional
Union. Their goal was to get a constitutional
amendment passed to gain the vote for
women all over the United States. They
borrowed strategies from British women’s
groups who also were working to gain the
vote in their country. They organized
parades, lobbied, members of Congress, and
picketed the White House. Women who took
part in protests were sometimes attacked by
members of watching crowds. Some were
arrested and spent time in jail. Imprisoned
activists who went on hunger strikes were force
fed.
Protest in Chicago (1916)
Courtesy Library of Congress Manuscript
The public had sympathy for the women, and President Woodrow Wilson felt compelled to
endorse the women’s suffrage amendment in 1918. Congress passed the amendment in 1919,
and the states ratified the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920. © 2013
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1D:2: Case Study: Voting Rights Act of 1965
In 1865, Frederick Douglass, a leading abolitionist and former slave, made a passionate speech
advocating voting rights for African Americans. In this speech, he said:
I am for the “immediate, unconditional, and universal” enfranchisement of the black man, in
every state in the Union. Without this, his liberty is a mockery; without this, you might as
well almost retain the old name of slavery for his condition; for, in fact, if he is not the slave
of the individual master, he is the slave of society, and holds his liberty as a privilege, not as a
right.
In the aftermath of the Civil War, the Fourteenth (ratified in 1868) and Fifteenth (ratified in
1870) Amendments seemed to answer Douglass’s call. The Fourteenth Amendment states that
any person born or naturalized in the United States is a citizen of the nation, as well as the state
in which he lives. Thus, for the first time, the federal government, as well as the states, became
the source of citizenship. States could no longer limit or deny the rights and privileges of
national citizenship. The Fifteenth Amendment provides that the right of citizens to vote cannot
be denied or limited because of race, color, or “previous condition of servitude.”
As a result, many African American men were able to vote in the Reconstruction Era. Many were
elected to state and federal offices. However, when Reconstruction ended, states began taking
action to make it difficult if not impossible for African Americans to vote. This included
intimidation and violence as well as laws aimed at preventing African Americans from voting.
These laws included requiring voters to pass a literacy test, which was made more difficult for
black voters than white voters, or charging a tax to vote. This tax was called a poll tax. The
Supreme Court upheld both literacy tests and
poll taxes as constitutional.
The National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People was formed in 1909. Its goal
was to gain civil rights, including the right to
vote, for African Americans. The organization
and others concerned with voting rights had
some successes in legislatures and in the
courts.
John Lewis being beaten by state troopers during
the Selma to Montgomery voting rights march.
With the rise of the Civil Rights Movement in
the 1950s and 1960s, voting rights became a
Courtesy National Archives
major issue. Thousands of people traveled into
Southern towns to conduct voter registration drives. Marches were held to draw attention to the
issue. In 1962, Congress passed the Twenty-fourth Amendment banning poll taxes. The states
ratified the amendment early in 1964, a major step. Yet Southern states were still preventing
many African Americans from voting.
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The Democratic Party won a huge victory in
the 1964 election. Civil rights groups and
political leaders decided the time was right
to push for legislation. President Lyndon B.
Johnson presented the Voting Rights Act to
Congress in March 1965. The bill was passed
and signed into law on August 3.
In essence, the Voting Rights Act banned
discrimination in voting practices. It
provided for the federal government to
oversee elections in states with a history of
discrimination. In addition, to make any
changes in voting practices, those states had
to clear the changes with the U.S.
Department of Justice.
The Voting Rights Act has been renewed
four times, most recently in 2006. In late
2012, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear
a case calling the 2006 reauthorization of the
bill into question. Supporters of the act say
that there are still problems with voter
suppression in the historically suspect areas.
But opponents say that times have changed
and evidence of current discrimination
should be provided, rather than enforcing
the law based on things that happened 50
years ago.
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1E: Activity: Analyzing Arguments for and against Lowering the Voting Age
Objective
In this activity, students complete a reading that lays out arguments for and against lowering the
minimum voting age to 16. They create a class chart of the arguments pro and con and identify
the arguments they find most persuasive.
Procedures
1. Remind students of the unit focus question: Should Congress pass a law to extend the
right to vote to persons 16 years of age and older? If students raise the issue of whether
extending the right to vote should be done through a constitutional amendment, confirm
that an amendment would be one approach, but that a law is simpler option that the
Supreme Court’s ruling in Katzenbach v. Morgan (1966) has suggested would be
constitutional.
2. Distribute Reading 1F. Have students read the handout, highlighting arguments for and
against lowering the voting age with two different colors of highlighters.
3. Guide students in a discussion of the arguments, creating a classroom chart of the
arguments on both sides of the issue:
Arguments for Lowering the Voting Age to 16
Arguments against Lowering the Voting Age to
16
Allow time for students to add arguments that were not included in the reading.



Next, ask students to work with a partner and to identify the most persuasive argument
on each side of the focus question.
Poll the students regarding their views on the most persuasive arguments, allowing time
for students to explain why they found particular arguments persuasive.
Take a poll of where students stand on the focus question: Should Congress pass a law to
extend the right to vote to persons 16 years of age and older? Compare the results with
the poll you took at the beginning of the unit. Have any students changed their minds? If
so, what persuaded them to do so? For those students whose opinions’ have not changed,
are they better able to support their position now? What do they understand about the
opposing viewpoint that they didn’t understand before?
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1F: Reading: What Should the Minimum Voting Age Be?
Should Congress pass a law to extend the right to vote to persons 16 years of age and older?
More than 40 years ago, U.S. President Richard Nixon signed into law the 26th Amendment to
the U.S. Constitution. That amendment lowered the minimum voting age in the United States
from 21 to 18. As he signed the amendment, he said, “…[T]he reason I believe that your
generation, the 11 million new voters, will do so much for America at home, is that you will
infuse into this country some idealism, some courage, some stamina, some high moral purpose
that this Nation always needs….”
Today, most democratic nations in the world give the franchise, or the right to vote, to
persons at least 18 years of age. A few nations have higher minimum voting ages, while a few
have lowered the voting age to 16 or 17. Beginning with Nicaragua in 1984, several nations gave
the franchise to people as young as 16. These include Austria, Brazil, Cuba, and Ecuador. The
minimum voting age is 17 in East Timor, Indonesia, North Korea, South Sudan, and Sudan. In
Bosnia, Serbia, and Montenegro, 16- and 17-year-olds can vote if they have jobs. Some U.S. states
have also considered a lower minimum voting age, but none have yet enacted it.
Is lowering the voting age a good idea? Those who support the idea argue that it will involve
more people in voting and strengthen democracy. Those who oppose the idea argue that it will
not increase involvement and may actually harm democratic practice.
Lowering the Voting Age to 16: Supporters and Opponents
When the 26th Amendment was passed, one of the persuasive arguments used to support
lowering the voting age was that, since 18- to 20-year-olds were being drafted into the military,
they should also have the right to vote. But a similar argument is made regarding paying taxes. It
is argued that making teens pay billions of dollars in sales and other taxes without a say in how
those taxes are spent is unfair. In fact, some call it “taxation without representation.”
But opponents point out that 16- and 17-year-olds generally require parental consent for
most major life-decisions. In the United States, teens can enter the military at age 17, but only
with parental consent. Under U.S. laws, minors are not considered to have the capacity to enter
contracts. With some exceptions, such as buying retail goods, contracts they have signed may be
voided — just because they are minors.
Regardless of these limits, supporters of lowering the voting age say it is morally wrong to
treat young people unequally to adults when it comes to voting. The arguments used against the
youth vote are the same as those once used to keep women, racial minorities, or poor people
from voting.
Opponents point out that minors are different from these other categories of people. The
condition that keeps minors from voting is temporary. They will eventually be able to legally
vote.
Supporters argue that engaging young people in elections will decrease long-term voter
apathy. Research has shown that people who turn 18 in an election year are more likely to vote
in future elections than those who turn 18 immediately after an election year. The idea behind
this “birth effect” is that the longer an eligible voter must wait to vote in an election, the less

Adapted from a reading developed for Deliberating in a Democracy in the Americas, a collaborative project of the
Constitutional Rights Foundation Chicago, Street Law, and the Constitutional Rights Foundation.
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enthusiastic and less likely he or she will be to vote. In the first five years after Austria lowered
the voting age to 16, many seem to remain engaged in the electoral process.
Voters in lower age groups do not show up to the polls in large numbers. The U.S. Federal
Election Commission has stated that not even one in five adults aged 18-25 votes at all. Thus, the
idea that lowering the voting age will decrease apathy is not well-founded.
Furthermore, opponents say, the teenage brain is less capable of making rational decisions
than is the adult brain. Research by the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health reveals that the
prefrontal cortex of the human brain does not fully mature until a person is about 25 years old.
The prefrontal cortex controls decision-making, judgment, and impulse control.
Because of this lack of full mental maturity, opponents say that minors can be easily
manipulated. Politicians of the ruling party will be able to unduly influence teen voters more
easily than adults. Or teen voters will just vote in line with their parents. Teen voters may not be
committed enough to become well-informed. Surely, opponents argue, we do not need more
voters who do not understand the issues.
Supporters say that even if the brains of teenagers are not fully developed, the choice of 18 as
the voting age is arbitrary. Young people aged 16 and 17 are capable of understanding the
choices offered at the ballot box. Since they study history, government, and current events in
school, they may be better informed than older Americans.
Furthermore, supporters say, politicians now take young people for granted. Many laws affect
teenagers as much as they affect voting adults. Teenagers ought, therefore, to have a voice in the
political system.
What do you think: Should Congress pass a law to extend the right to vote to persons 16 years
of age and older?
Glossary of Highlighted Terms
Franchise – the right to vote, especially to elect representatives to a national legislature or a
parliament.
Minors – people younger than the legal age of adulthood
Capacity – the legal ability or qualification to do something such as make an arrest or a will or
enter into a legal contract
Electoral – relating to or involving elections, electors, or voters
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1G: Activity: Planning a Campaign on the Focus Question
Objective
The vote is, of course, not the only way in which U.S. citizens can make their voices heard in the
political process. Indeed, other avenues are open not only to citizens but to noncitizens as well.
Students wrap up their study of the minimum voting age by planning a campaign to sway public
opinion and policymakers to their position on this issue. This plan can serve as the basis for
students’ service project.
Procedures
1. Ask students: Most of you are not currently eligible to vote. Does this mean you have no
voice in the policymaking process? In what other ways could you make your voice heard?
Students should be able to list a variety of methods, from writing to Members of Congress
to distributing information about the issue to members of the public and starting a
petition on the White House “We the People” site.
2. Tell students that they are going to be planning a campaign to advance their position on
the focus question: Should Congress pass a law to extend the right to vote to persons 16
years of age and older? Students will be able to work with a group of like-minded
students to plan how they would influence policy and public opinion on the question.
Allow time for students to form groups with three or four other students who have
similar opinions on the focus question.
3. Distribute Handouts 1H and 1I and go over the instructions with students. The task asks
students, acting as the Communications Department of a nonprofit advocacy group, to
develop a plan for influencing both policymakers and the public. They are also to
complete at least one advocacy product called for in their plan. Depending on the time
available and your plans for the service project (see Unit 5), you may want to have
students more fully implement their plans (i.e., complete and distribute other products
called for in their plans).
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1H: Handout: Advocacy Campaign Guidelines
Imagine this scenario. Your group is the Communications Team for a national nonprofit with
headquarters in Chicago. Your organization has taken a strong position on extending the right to
vote to 16- and 17-year-olds. Your position is:
The Communications Team has been asked to develop a plan to advocate for your position.
The plan must include four components:
1. A description of what you will do and the products you will create to influence public
opinion.
2. A description of what you will do and the products you will create to influence
policymakers.
3. A sample product called for in your plan. This sample can be used to show your
nonprofit’s board the direction you will be taking. The sample product should include a
tagline around which your campaign will be built (e.g., “It gets better” or “Think texting
and driving is NBD? RIP”).
Handout 1I provides tips and suggestions that may be useful in creating your plan and product.
Influencing Public Opinion
Describe the steps you will take to influence public opinion and list the products that will be
used in implementing those steps.
Influencing Policymakers
Describe the steps you will take to influence policymakers and list the products that will be used
in implementing those steps.
Sample Product/Tagline
Attach your sample product. Explain the thinking behind the tagline included in the product.
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1I: Handout: Tips for Creating an Advocacy Campaign
Persuasion
Persuasion is at the heart of advocacy. You are trying to persuade others that your viewpoint is
right. A few skills are key to being persuasive:




Clearly state your message. Carefully craft a description of the issue. Tell why it is
important to society. Write a concise statement of your position on the issue.
Pull together the arguments for your position. Gather evidence, quotations, anecdotes,
and visuals to support your view. Stories can pack an emotional punch. But you need
sound reasoning too!
Refute the opposition’s position. Demonstrate that you can counter the opposition’s
arguments. But be brief and fair.
Know your audience. Understand to whom you are talking. Tailor your message to the
interests and concerns of the audience. But don’t “sell out” your message to attract an
audience.
Influencing Public Opinion
Whose opinion will you try to influence? Here are some possibilities:
Individuals: Sometimes it is easiest to start close to home. Try persuading friends, family
members, fellow students, teachers. To influence policy, however, you will have to reach out to
other members of the community.
Businesses: Public policy often affects businesses. Consider whether a particular business or the
business community might support your efforts.
Nonprofits: These include advocacy and interest groups. Neighborhood associations, unions,
political organizations, and environmental groups are examples. Other examples are service,
volunteer, and charitable groups such as the United Way or groups that focus on helping one
particular problem. Religious groups are also part of this category.
Influencing Policymakers
What policymakers will you try to influence? A key is identifying what policymaking bodies will
be acting on the proposal you are supporting or opposing. Targeting the wrong level of
government is ineffective. It is also embarrassing.
Advocacy Tools
The strategies and tools available are nearly limitless. Here are a few:
 Letters, emails, or telephone calls to public officials.
 Letter-writing campaigns, designed to get many people to send letters or emails to
officials. In designing a campaign, you will need to create sample letters or emails. You
will also need to think about how you will involve people in the campaign.
 Petitions. A petition is like a letter with many signatures. It is easier to get people to sign a
petition than write a letter. The White House even has a page for creating petitions
Adapted, in part, from the Civic Action Project, Constitutional Rights Foundation Los Angeles.
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2013 ILLINOIS YOUTH SUMMIT – 17




(www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/09/01/we-people-announcing-white-house-petitions-how-theywork). You will need to draft the petition and consider how you will get people to sign it.
Social media campaigns. Tools like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs/vlogs, and wikis can
be used to promote ideas.
Public service announcements and other educational products. Public service
announcements on the Internet, television, or radio can influence public opinion. Ads in
print media, as well as posters, brochures, and similar tools, can also be useful. Careful
analysis of whom to target and how to reach them is key to making these tools effective.
Demonstrations. Another approach to affecting public policy and opinion is by
demonstrating. A demonstration can include marching, picketing, and walkouts.
Demonstrations draw attention to an issue. But they can also create a backlash. This is
especially likely if the demonstration disrupts people’s lives or results in violence.
Using the media. You can do this by getting the media to report on your issue or even
creating your own media project. Think about what is most appropriate for your
purposes. You can write articles for your school paper or website. You can send letters to
the editor or press releases to local newspapers. You can have a press conference.
Be creative in developing your plan. Let this list inspire you. But don't let it limit your
thinking!
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Lowering the Voting Age: Selected Resources
Sources
Cheng, Jenny Diamond, “Leave the Voting Age Alone,” The New York Times (May 28, 2012),
www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/05/28/do-we-need-to-redefine-adulthood/leave-the-voting-agealone.
CIRCLE Staff with Haley Pero and Laura Nelson, Voting Laws, Education, and Youth Civic
Engagement: A Literature Review, CIRCLE Working Paper #75 (Boston: Tufts University, Center
for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, November 2012),
www.civicyouth.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/WP_75_CIRCLEStaff.pdf.
CRF Staff, “Should the Voting Age Be Lowered to 16?” CRF Forum (Los Angeles: Constitutional
Rights Foundation, n.d.), www.crfforum.org/topics/?topicid=23&catid=12&view=document&id=15.
James, Geoffrey, “The Teen Ticket: Are Teenagers Old Enough to Vote?” Edutopia (September
14, 2004), www.edutopia.org/teen-ticket.
Levinson, Ellie, “The Voting Age Should Be Raised, Not Lowered,” The Independent (April 19,
2004), www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/ellie-levenson-the-voting-age-should-be-raisednot-lowered-560411.html.
Maas, Susan, “It’s Time to Extend Voting Rights to 16- and 17-Year-Olds,” MPR News
(Minneapolis: Minnesota Public Radio, October 16, 2012),
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/10/16/maas.
Nixon, Richard, “Remarks at a Ceremony Marking the Certification of the 26th Amendment to
the Constitution,” The American Presidency Project (July 5, 1971),
www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=3068.
“Top Ten Reasons to Lower the Voting Age” (Rockville, MD: National Youth Rights Association,
n.d.), www.youthrights.org/vote10.html.
Court Cases
Katzenbach v. Morgan, 384 U.S. 641 (1966)
Minor v. Happersett, 88 U.S. 162 (1874)
U.S. v. Reese, 92 U.S. 214 (1875)
Information and Analysis
Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, www.civicyouth.org
Civic Action Project, Constitutional Rights Foundation, www.crfcap.org/
National Youth Rights Association, www.youthrights.org/
Voting Rights Act of 1965, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1973–1973aa-6
© 2013
2013 ILLINOIS YOUTH SUMMIT – 19