Would giving 16-year-olds the vote improve democracy or just change the way campaigns are run?

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Lowering the voting age - Standpoint image

Would giving 16-year-olds the right to vote improve democracy or just change the way campaigns are run. I believe these two points are not mutually exclusive and one cannot be done without affecting the other. Decreasing the age limit will always improve democracy as it allows more voices to be heard and therefore makes the voting more fair and therefore making voting more democratic. Although this is true it also affects how campaigns are run as for example in the UK 1.5 million citizens will be brought into the voting pool and therefore they will have to appeal to the younger audience to access new voters who don't necasserily strictly associate with a certain party. Over time people become aligned with parties and become very loyal even if the party changes a lot. Sixteen and seventeen year olds are new to being involved in politics and therefore are most susceptiable to campaigns. It is no longer about whether we must allow sixteen and seventeen year olds to vote. The UK is going to lower the voting age. By increasing the variety of people that vote we contribute to a more democratic country and by decreasing the minimum voting age by 2 years we include more people. Democracy is all about inclusivity. The topics that parties focus on will also change. Older generations focus more on past grievances while younger generations focus more on the future. This affects campaigns run by parties as they will have to start incorporating more future-related topics rather than incorporating more history. Therefore I believe that the world is making the right decision in starting to include younger people. As a young person myself I feel like I am contributing more to society as a whole from a younger age if I have the right to vote. The only thing for certain is that things are going to change forever in politics and we must embrace it.

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