Some of the state’s cities and towns want to let 16- and 17-year-olds vote. Some members of Congress support a lower voting age.

But a majority of Massachusetts residents think it’s a bad idea, according to a new survey by the Western New England University Polling Institute.

In a telephone poll of 495 adults across the state, 29% of respondents said they support lowering the voting age in congressional and presidential elections, while 65% said they oppose it. Another 6% said they neither support nor oppose the idea, or were unsure of their opinion.

“This survey is the first look at what Massachusetts residents think about lowering the voting age,” said Tim Vercellotti, director of the institute and a professor of political science. “It’s pretty clear that the people are generally opposed to it, although the gap closed significantly between national and local elections.”

Conducted between April 9 and 27, the survey found a sharp divide among registered Democrats and Republicans. Democrats were relatively split — with support increasing for a lower voting age in local elections — while Republicans overwhelmingly opposed the idea. Nearly three-quarters of unenrolled voters said they are against a lower voting age in national elections.

Support was highest among people under 40. Men were more likely to say they strongly oppose a lower voting age.

Among parents of 13- to 18-year-olds, 62% said they are opposed to dropping the voting age in national elections and 54% said they oppose it for local elections.

The survey’s margin of error is 4 percentage points. The university sponsored and paid for the poll.

Explore the data:

Chart by Greg Saulmon / The Republican • Source: Western New England University Polling Institute

The survey came on the heels of discussion about the issue in a number of Massachusetts communities and in Congress, where U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a Boston Democrat, introduced a proposal to lower the voting age to 16 in federal elections beginning in 2020.

“From gun violence, to immigration reform, to climate change, to the future of work, our young people are organizing, mobilizing and calling us to action,” Pressley said on the House floor in March. “They are at the forefront of social and legislative movements and have earned inclusion in our democracy.”

She also argued that since they can drive, work and pay taxes, 16- and 17-year-olds should be able to vote.

In 1971, the 26th Amendment to the Constitution lowered the voting age from 21 to 18. Dropping it again may take time, Vercellotti said.

“When the voting age lowered to 18, it was something that took people time to wrap their brains around,” he said.

Pressley’s proposal faced immediate criticism, failing in the Democrat-controlled House with a 305-126 vote. While a majority of Democrats voted in favor of the amendment, Republicans almost unanimously voted against it.

That vote may have foreshadowed the poll’s findings.

While 41% of the registered Democrats surveyed said they support a lower voting age in national elections and 48% said they oppose it, the Republicans interviewed were more strongly decided. Eleven percent said they support the idea, and 89% said they are against it — with 78% saying they are strongly opposed.

Support among Democrats increased for local elections, with 55% in favor and 33% opposed, while Republicans remained unwavering in their opposition.

Vercellotti wasn’t surprised. “Republicans show much uniformity in their opinions on issues, where Democrats vary more often,” he said.

Respondents who said they favor a lower voting age in national elections were asked to explain their support in their own words. Common answers were that 16- and 17-year-olds are mature enough to vote, that they have valid viewpoints and that the elections are about their future.

Opponents said people under 18 aren’t mature enough, don’t have enough knowledge of candidates and issues and don’t have enough life experience. One percent of respondents said they do not support lowering the voting age because younger voters will support Democrats.

Allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in local elections was more popular among the respondents: 42% said they support it, while 52% were opposed.

“For something that may seem very abstract on a national level, it is relevant on a local level,” Vercellotti said.

Several cities across Massachusetts have attempted to lower the voting age to 16 in municipal elections. In early May, the Somerville City Council voted unanimously in favor of lowering the voting age. If approved by the state Legislature, the city would become the first community in the state to lower its voting age.

Northampton is considering a similar measure. Lowering the voting age to 16 is one of four changes to municipal elections the city’s Charter Review Committee is recommending this year.

“Municipal elections affect teens in regard to school budgets, school committees and many other things,” said Stanley Moulton, the committee’s chairman. “I’m confident that 16- and 17-year-olds for the most part would make informed decisions.”

Although the change wouldn’t go into effect until 2021, Moulton is hopeful that the committee’s recommendations will move forward.

“It is first step in lengthy process, but it’s a significant step,” he said.

The Massachusetts Legislature has already struck down proposals in Lowell and Cambridge. Other towns — including Ashfield, Shelburne and Wendell — are awaiting a decision from the Legislature. Town meeting voters in each community passed resolutions to lower the voting age as far back as 2017.

The Empower Voting Act proposed in January by Democratic Reps. Andres X. Vargas, of Haverhill, and Dylan A. Fernandes, of Falmouth, would allow communities to lower voting ages in local elections without state approval. In 1970, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Congress has the authority to change the voting age for federal elections, but not state and local elections.

In addition to Massachusetts, a dozen other state legislatures are considering lowering the voting age for federal or local elections, including California, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, Oregon and Virginia, according to Vote16, and organization led by high school and college students that advocates for lowering the voting age.

The organization’s website lists 20 countries that allow 16- or 17-year-olds to vote, sometimes with requirements that include employment. The countries include Brazil, Germany, Indonesia, Norway, Scotland and Serbia.

Gov. Charlie Baker has expressed skepticism about the idea, citing his experience as a parent. “I did raise three teenagers, and based on that I’d be pretty dubious about lowering it to 16,” he said in March, response to Pressley’s proposal.

Supporters at the national level include House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang.