The move to expand voting rights to adolescents comes on the heels of the council's decision last week to allow non-citizen immigrants to vote in school committee elections.
"Our lives are being decided by the school committee, and we have no control over it," said 17-year-old CRLS student Janasse E. Jean.
Supporters said being allowed to vote in local elections would help combat voter apathy among youth by getting them involved in the political process at an early age.
"We're engaging people in a life long process," said Cambridge resident Gerald Bergman, a member of Cambridge's Democratic Citizens' Committee.
Students also argued that allowing them to vote in local elections would combat student apathy.
"By the time you're 18, you've gone through four years of high school with no one listening to you," said 16-year-old CRLS student Hannah N. Jukovsky. "That's why young people don't vote."
Teens said the measure would help them become more involved in the democratic process.
Read more in News
There's No Place Like Harvard For the HolidaysRecommended Articles
-
Youths Urge Lowering of City Voting AgeFor a group of Cambridge youth, all politics is local. For the last several months, a group of students from
-
City Council Rejects Lower Voting AgeThe Cambridge City Council rejected an effort to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in Cambridge municipal elections last night,
-
City Council Moves To Lower Voting AgeAs dozens of students with yellow buttons bearing the slogan “expand democracy” crowded into City Hall on Monday night, the
-
City Council Votes To Lower Voting Age to 17As dozens of students with yellow buttons bearing the slogan “expand democracy” crowded into City Hall last Monday night, the
-
iVoteYeah, I’m not going to lie: I almost didn’t vote last week. The whole process is really a pain.
