Young people have kicked off a national campaign at Parliament House to lower the federal voting age from 18 to 16, but the government says it’s not the country’s “priority right now”.
Supported by independent MPs Monique Ryan and Andrew Wilkie and Greens youth spokesman Stephen Bates, the “Make it 16” campaign argues that if 16 year olds can drive, pay rent and work full time, they should be allowed to vote for their government representatives.
They say the government has the ability to pass legislation to amend the Commonwealth Electoral Act of 1918 to lower the age, and follow in the footsteps of Austria, Argentina and Brazil, who have already made such a change.
New Zealand, Canada and Germany are also on track to also lower their voting age.
Mr Bates introduced a private members Bill to lower the voting age earlier this year but failed.
Recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates there are more than 600,000 16 and 17 year olds in the country.
Campaign co-founder and year 11 student Archie Coppola said young people wanted a say in government decisions which “affect our lives and futures”.
“Sixteen and 17 year olds can already drive, consent to medical procedures, join the armed forces, vote in political party preselections, leave school or home, pay rent and work full time,” he said.
“We should also have the right to vote.
“We want politicians to stop ignoring us simply because we are excluded from voting in federal elections.
“Lowering the voting age and including more engaged young voices in elections will only strengthen our democracy and help our elected representatives to make better decisions.”
Dr Ryan, at a joint press conference with the campaigners at Parliament House this week, threw her support behind the bid.
“It doesn’t seem right that we’re not giving young people a chance to participate in democracy,” she said.
“The reality is that they’re going to be affected by decisions that we make in this place – whether it’s about the climate and environment, housing or the economy.
“All of those things matter more to them than to some of the people in this place. It’s only fair that we give them a chance to participate in our democracy
“We have increasing evidence that young people have the same cognitive abilities – in some instances better cognitive abilities than older people who have the right to vote. It’s only fair that we give them a chance to have their say in their future … It’s only fair and only reasonable to make the voting age 16.”
Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Patrick Gorman, on Tuesday said young people “don’t have to have a vote to have a say”.
“There’s a whole bunch of other ways to engage in Australia’s democracy,” he told ABC Perth.
He said while it was not a “crazy idea”, changing the voting age was not a priority “we need right now”.
“Although, I one hundred per cent love the fact that we live in a democracy where, whether or not you’re old enough to vote, you can get on the airwaves, you can come to Parliament House, you can get your issue on the agenda,” he said.
“And I think that kind of shows why this probably isn’t a necessary change at this time, because voting is not the only way that you can engage in our democracy.”
Pushed further, Mr Gorman said there was a risk such a change would lead to a weaker voting system.
“If we take away compulsory voting, or have some sort of, you know, ‘your first vote’s free’ idea, which is what the Make it 16 proposal is, that does weaken compulsory voting and we can’t go down that path,” he said.
“We’ve got one of the best electoral systems in the world; it would be a real shame to start weakening it, or weaken compulsory voting.”