Lowering the voting age to 16 is not a new idea. In some countries like Brazil, Austria and Scotland, people aged 16 and up can vote. Some Canadians support this idea. Others oppose it.

What do you think?

Jeff Coffman, a city councillor from Lethbridge, wants to lower the legal voting age from the current 18.

…research actually shows that the younger a person votes, the greater the [likelihood] that they will actually keep on being a voter throughout their life…. So this is about training a group of 16- and 17-year-olds how to be democratic citizens.

Civic elections are a great place to start, because teenagers use city services. They go to school, walk and drive on roads, take the bus and use libraries and recreational facilities.

I think kids nowadays have greater maturity than we give them credit for and they certainly have greater access to knowledge and information than what we did in my generation.

CBC News Calgary (September 23, 2015). Alberta cities vote against lowering voting age to 16.