# FILE NAME: 00000965.soc
# TITLE: Should the minimum voting age be reduced to 16? [50b633c8fe799cf209ccc419c0a4fe68]
# DESCRIPTION: 
# DATA TYPE: soc
# MODIFICATION TYPE: original
# RELATES TO: 
# RELATED FILES: 
# PUBLICATION DATE: 2025-10-12
# MODIFICATION DATE: 2025-10-12
# NUMBER ALTERNATIVES: 4
# NUMBER VOTERS: 5
# NUMBER UNIQUE ORDERS: 4
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 1: Statement 1 - The minimum voting age should be reduced to 16 years old. This is because 16 year olds are able to legally work, get married, and join the army, so why shouldn't they get a say in the political sphere? Furthermore, 16 year olds are often more engaged in the political sphere than older people. The main reservation is around the lack of emotional maturity and life experience that would help young people become informed voters. Although there are many mature 16 year olds, we don't think they have enough experience to make a good judgement. Therefore, we think that the minimum voting age should be reduced to 16 years old, but that it should be accompanied by an education program to inform young people about the voting system and potential outcomes of their decisions.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 2: Statement 2 - In general, the group was in favour of lowering the voting age to 16. The participants acknowledged that the younger generation is more engaged in politics than ever before and lowering the voting age would encourage this engagement. They felt that it is important to give young people a say in their future. However, the participants were also aware that many young people may not be fully aware of the political landscape and this could lead to uninformed voting. Therefore, they suggested that some sort of education programme be implemented to help young people become more informed voters.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 3: Statement 3 - In general, the group was in favour of lowering the voting age to 16. The participants felt that it would be beneficial for young people to be able to have a say in the political sphere. They felt that young people would be more engaged in politics, and would be more likely to vote if they were able to do so at a younger age. The participants acknowledged that young people may not have as much life experience as older people, but felt that they would still be able to make informed decisions. The participants also felt that lowering the voting age would allow young people to have a say on issues that affect them.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 4: Statement 4 - We have come to the conclusion that the voting age should be reduced to 16. We acknowledge that there are pros and cons to this. We think that it is important for young people to be involved in the political sphere and have their voices heard. This is because they are impacted by the decisions made by politicians and it is important that they have a say in this. We also think that 16 year olds are old enough to make informed decisions and have a good understanding of politics. However, we acknowledge that there are some 16 year olds who may not be mature enough to make good decisions and may not be fully informed. We think that the government should put more effort into educating young people about politics and voting so that they can make informed decisions.
2: 1,4,3,2
1: 1,3,4,2
1: 4,3,2,1
1: 2,1,3,4