Make It 16
Make It 16 is a youth-led campaign to lower New Zealand's voting age from 18 to 16. It is among the most legally significant voting-rights campaigns in the democratic world: in 2022, New Zealand's Supreme Court ruled that the current voting age of 18 constitutes a breach of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act for 16- and 17-year-olds — an unjustified limit on the right to be free from age discrimination. The ruling did not itself change the law (that requires a 75% parliamentary majority or a referendum), but it established that the current law is rights-infringing, putting the onus on parliament to justify maintaining it.
The campaign's argument is both rights-based and practical: 16-year-olds can work full-time, consent to medical treatment, pay taxes, and drive, but cannot vote on the decisions that shape those domains. Research on the countries that have lowered the voting age (Austria, Scotland, Wales, among others) suggests that voting at 16 increases turnout among first-time voters and creates lifelong voting habits, strengthening democratic participation overall.
Links
- Website: makeit16.org.nz