1971: 18-Year-olds get the vote: with the Vietnam war as a backdrop, the 26th Amendment to the Constitution towered the voting age from 21

BACKGROUND

Setting 21 as the minimum age for voting and other legal obligations, like becoming a party to a contract, was a holdover from English common law. Historians say 21 was the age of majority in medieval England because it was thought that at age 21 men could assume the physical responsibilities of knighthood.

CRITICAL THINKING 1

* Direct students to the table on the youth vote on page 26. Note the differences in voter turnout between the 18-to-24 group and the 25 & Older group.

Ask students to suggest one or more reasons why they think such a relatively small proportion of young people vote. Can they think of reasons why people in the 25 & Older group apparently see more value in voting?

CRITICAL THINKING 2

* One way to raise the voting turnout of young people--and all citizens--might be to make voting mandatory. In several countries--Australia, Mexico, and some parts of Switzerland, for example--voting is compulsory.

Ask students to take sides on the issue of compulsory voting. What are some of the pros and cons of compulsory voting?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

* Which election issues might prompt more teens to vote?

* Can you think of one or two reasons why the Founding Fathers made amending the Constitution a much more difficult process than passing ordinary legislation?

WRITING PROMPT

* Refer to the 1967 Times editorial, which argued that the skills needed to be a soldier and those needed to be a voter are very different. Have students write letters to the editor in which they explain why they agree or disagree with the Times editorial.

* The "father" of the 26th Amendment was Jennings Randolph, a U.S. Representative and later Senator from West Virginia, who introduced bills to give 18-year-olds the vote 11 times, starting in 1942.

* A proposed 28th Amendment would ban desecration of the flag.

1. One important factor in building support. for the 18-year-old vote was

a the end of segregation in public schools.

b the hundreds of thousands of young soldiers who were serving in the Vietnam War.

c opposition to the war in Vietnam by many of America's most valued allies.

d Richard Nixon's campaign for the presidency in 1968.

2. In 1970, Congress amended the Voting Rights Act, with a provision towering the voting age from 21 to 18. But the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that

a 18-year-olds were too young to vote.

b Congress did not have the constitutional authority to legislate on matters involving elections.

c the law applied only to those 18-year-olds who had graduated from high school.

d the law applied only to federal elections, and not to state elections.

3. Normally, passage of a constitutional amendment requires

a another review by the Supreme Court.

b a national referendum open to all citizens who are eligible to vote.

c the votes of a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress and ratification by three quarters of the state legislatures.

d a majority vote in both houses of Congress.

4. Briefly describe the youth movement in the United States in the 1960s.