Article content

It’s an idea slowly gaining traction in Europe and across North America – voting at 16.

Sixteen-year-olds voted in Scotland for the first time in 2014. The change in Austria came in 2007. Ecuador dropped its voting age a year later and Argentina dropped it to 16 in 2012. Several German states have lowered the voting age, as well as parts of Switzerland and Norway.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or The research behind Edmonton's new debate on voting at 16 Back to video

In the United States, Maryland’s Hyattsville and Takoma Park became the first cities to let high schools students vote in local elections. San Francisco residents will vote on a similar motion in November.

This week, Edmonton’s city council is being asked weigh in on municipal and school board elections. The Edmonton Youth Council wants to lobby the province for a change.

Advocates cite cognitive research by Daniel Hart, a psychology professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey. We reached him Saturday.

Your research suggests 16-years-olds are mentally prepared to vote. How are you measuring that?

It’s based on American national survey data that asks young adults questions over the phone to measure their basic knowledge of politics, their tolerance, participation in volunteer activities and their sense of themselves as people able to make change through politics, said Hart.