Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley's plan to lower the voting age from 18 to 16 for all federal elections has passed the House of Representatives.
WBUR reports the newly elected Democratic representative from Massachusetts presented the proposal as an amendment to the sweeping legislation H.R. 1. That bill contains many initiatives that are top priorities for the new Democratic majority in the House of Representatives, including new anti-corruption rules, transparency reform and automatic voter registration. Vox reports the bill passed the House easily on Friday.
As Boston News reports, Pressley's amendment would go into effect immediately, meaning 16-year-olds would be able to vote in the 2020 congressional and presidential elections.
The voter expansion plan is not the first of its kind, but it is far more expansive than previous efforts. In 2013, Takoma Park, Maryland, changed its voting age to 16. City and state governments in Massachusetts, California and Oregon are currently considering lowering their voting ages.
Pressley is determined to make a lower voting age a reality; she said 16-year-olds are already given a lot of responsibility in the U.S. from being allowed to drive to paying taxes should they have part-time jobs.
“Our young people deserve to have the opportunity to have their right to vote,” Pressley said. “We celebrate them often and lift them up as foot soldiers of movements. We thank them for their sweat equity that they expend at the forefront of change, and they should have the opportunity to be respected and celebrated as ballot-casters.”
While H.R. 1 has passed the House, it is expected to have a tough time in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said the bill "is a terrible proposal" and promised to do everything in his power to make sure it never receives "any floor time in the Senate.” Even if the bill were to get through the Senate by some miracle, President Trump would likely veto it.
Now, check these out:
Kamala Harris Reintroduces Bill To Add Statue Of Shirley Chisholm In The U.S. Capitol
Michelle Obama's High School Alma Mater To Name $4.3 Million Athletic Complex In Her Honor
