Climate crisis fuels push to drop voting age to 16
As Canada and the world see increasingly frequent examples of climate chaos by the week, the slow legislative move to give more of a say to those who will have to deal with it started over again in Ottawa.
When Parliament was dissolved for the election last summer, a slate of pending bills went with it, but Sen. Marilou McPhedran rose late last month to put one of them back on the table.
The newly named S-201 she sponsored has passed first reading, and McPhedran and its supporters hope the effort will eventually lead to Canadian citizens aged 16 and 17 winning the right to vote.
The Independent senator from Manitoba hopes the move might revitalize the country’s democracy, while some youth advocates said it was beyond time these teens get a bigger say, specifically on climate policy.
“It's becoming increasingly evident that the climate crisis is here and it requires robust actions now,” said Manvi Bhalla, who advocates for a louder political voice for young people as president of the group Shake Up The Establishment.
Just last month, three major storms featuring so-called "atmospheric rivers" battered British Columbia, destroying critical infrastructure. The storms followed devastating wildfires and summer heat waves that represent a lethal mix of cascading climate impacts from a warming planet.
Bhalla said what happens now will determine humanity’s future and that of the world’s landscapes and other beings — and young people deserve to have a say.
“Youth have no stake in the game but our futures and deserve to have a say in shaping this future given that we were born into this crisis with no sense of agency over its inception,” she said.
The voting rights push, meanwhile, made sharp progress in Germany over the summer, with the three parties forming its next coalition government all committed to lowering the voting age to 16.
“It’s not as radical an idea as many might think,” said Sara Austin, the chief executive at Children First Canada, a key backer of a separate legal challenge launched on Tuesday by young people in an Ontario court.
That brief argues youth are just as capable of making rational voting decisions as those over 18 and that the applicants have been denied a constitutional right to avoid discrimination based on age.
“Imagine if 16-year-olds could vote about the future they want,” said Catherine McKenna, Canada's former climate change minister who did not seek re-election in 2021. “They'll be 45 in 2050 when we need to be net-zero. I'll be 80.”
“I want to hear their voices now about what we need to do to get there. They'll live far longer with the consequences of our action or inaction,” she said in tweets supporting McPhedran’s bill.
For Bhalla, young people hope for an equitable, healthy and sustainable life — a slow life — and know what needs to be done to make it happen.
“It is beyond time to recognize and legitimize their intelligence and passion as an ends to meet these goals,” she said.
Morgan Sharp, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada's National Observer
Young Canadians file suit against federal over minimum voting age
Wed., December 1, 2021
Several young Canadians are taking the federal government to court in an effort to strike down the minimum voting age.
They argue that denying citizens under the age of 18 the right to vote in federal elections is unconstitutional.
They contend the minimum voting age violates two sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
They say one section of the charter guarantees the right to vote for all Canadian citizens without an age qualification.
The Canada Elections Act sets the minimum age for federal elections at 18.
Thirteen youth from across the country ranging in age from 12 to 18 are part of suit, which hasn't been tested in court.
"They each want to participate meaningfully in Canadian democracy by exercising their right to vote before age 18," said the claim, which was filed in Ontario's Superior Court of Justice on Tuesday.
The youth argue election rules have change significantly over time and should continue to do so.
"Initially restricted to property-owning men aged 21 and older, voting rights in Canada have been gradually extended to other Canadian citizens such as women, racialized people, Indigenous people, inmates, and citizens who live abroad," the claim said.
"This progressive enfranchisement was driven by our growing recognition that 'every citizen' must include those who may have been excluded from social and political participation."
The young people are joined in the suit by Justice for Children and Youth, a non-profit legal aid clinic dedicated to advancing the rights and interests of young people in Canada.
Tharan D’Silva, 12, is among those taking the federal government to court and "believes that youth have intelligent, developed political views that the government must acknowledge," the claim said.
"He is passionate about health care, climate change, and education, and participates in a social club for kids with autism," it said.
Katie Yu, 15, from Iqaluit, Nunavut, is also part of the claim.
She is "committed to raising awareness on climate change, mental health, suicide prevention and racial justice, and how these issues impact the North," the claim said.
"Minimum voting ages present an unjustifiable restriction on the right of citizens to vote in Canada," the claim argues.
The youth say being denied the right to vote "perpetuates stereotypical and prejudicial attitudes that young people are less capable and less deserving of participating in Canadian democracy through the voting process," according to the document.
Those qualifications aren't imposed on those older than 18, they claim.
"Vague and unsubstantiated assertions about maturity are not enough to justify depriving a large portion of Canadian society their core political right," the claim said.
The federal government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2021.
Liam Casey, The Canadian Press
Wed., December 1, 2021
Several young Canadians are taking the federal government to court in an effort to strike down the minimum voting age.
They argue that denying citizens under the age of 18 the right to vote in federal elections is unconstitutional.
They contend the minimum voting age violates two sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
They say one section of the charter guarantees the right to vote for all Canadian citizens without an age qualification.
The Canada Elections Act sets the minimum age for federal elections at 18.
Thirteen youth from across the country ranging in age from 12 to 18 are part of suit, which hasn't been tested in court.
"They each want to participate meaningfully in Canadian democracy by exercising their right to vote before age 18," said the claim, which was filed in Ontario's Superior Court of Justice on Tuesday.
The youth argue election rules have change significantly over time and should continue to do so.
"Initially restricted to property-owning men aged 21 and older, voting rights in Canada have been gradually extended to other Canadian citizens such as women, racialized people, Indigenous people, inmates, and citizens who live abroad," the claim said.
"This progressive enfranchisement was driven by our growing recognition that 'every citizen' must include those who may have been excluded from social and political participation."
The young people are joined in the suit by Justice for Children and Youth, a non-profit legal aid clinic dedicated to advancing the rights and interests of young people in Canada.
Tharan D’Silva, 12, is among those taking the federal government to court and "believes that youth have intelligent, developed political views that the government must acknowledge," the claim said.
"He is passionate about health care, climate change, and education, and participates in a social club for kids with autism," it said.
Katie Yu, 15, from Iqaluit, Nunavut, is also part of the claim.
She is "committed to raising awareness on climate change, mental health, suicide prevention and racial justice, and how these issues impact the North," the claim said.
"Minimum voting ages present an unjustifiable restriction on the right of citizens to vote in Canada," the claim argues.
The youth say being denied the right to vote "perpetuates stereotypical and prejudicial attitudes that young people are less capable and less deserving of participating in Canadian democracy through the voting process," according to the document.
Those qualifications aren't imposed on those older than 18, they claim.
"Vague and unsubstantiated assertions about maturity are not enough to justify depriving a large portion of Canadian society their core political right," the claim said.
The federal government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2021.
Liam Casey, The Canadian Press
