DEMOCRATIC PROCESS WOULD BENEFIT FROM “ANOTHER LAYER OF ACCOUNTABILITY”
|| By WILL GALLOWAY || Across South Carolina, sixteen and seventeen year olds live, work, and pay taxes. We are also set to inherit a burdensome national debt, a stagnant economy, and a globally competitive workplace. We have a stake in the game just as much as any eighteen or nineteen year old; yet have no means to influence the political process.
I, along with countless other South Carolinians, believe that sixteen and seventeen year olds should be permitted to vote in the elections that effect them the most, municipal and school board elections.
This would also serve to hold our politicians accountable. Nearly every campaign from school board to Senate uses sixteen and seventeen year olds as volunteers, but on Election Day, they are completely devoid of representation at the polls. Every time we read FITSNews, we are reminded that politicians need to be held accountable to the people, and this measure would introduce another layer of accountability.
By allowing people to vote earlier, we encourage better civic engagement later in life. If a voter begins making educated decisions at sixteen or seventeen, he or she will be more likely to continue being engaged and informed later on.
Those opposed to this measure tend to fall into two camps: those who believe sixteen and seventeen year olds are not capable of making important political decisions, and those who believe that it is simply a ploy to add more democratic voters to the rolls.
To the first category, I would say that our generation is more informed than any other. We follow elections in real time on twitter and other social media, and we know that the outcome will be something we have to live with for much longer than any other voting block. The state considers us mature enough to drive, work, and pay taxes, and it should consider us mature enough to vote.
To the second, we do not tend to fit neatly into either party. I am a conservative, I supported Rick Santorum’s presidential campaign and am the current vice chairman of the South Carolina Teenage Republicans. By engaging in a strong civic debate, the entire democratic process benefits.
If you agree that sixteen and seventeen year olds are capable of making political decisions, we ask that you sign this petition.
Thanks,
Will Galloway
Vice Chairman, S.C. Teenage Republicans
SIC SEZ
Will: Thanks for this amazing letter. I may not agree with your politics, but I agree with you 100 percent on this issue: If you’re old enough to pay taxes, you’re old enough to vote.
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