Child suffrage

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This article or paragraph presents the situation in Germany . Help us to describe the situation in other countries.

With the children suffrage is called a right to vote from birth. Child suffrage advocates want no one to be prevented from voting because of their age . In practice, they imagine, for example, that every person must personally register in the electoral roll before their first vote . It shouldn't matter how old this person is.

Delimitation and implementation

The demand for the right to vote for children is sometimes misunderstood to mean that small children should also be encouraged to vote. However, this is not the intention. Rather, young people should be able to exercise the right to vote as soon as they can and want to do so independently. A regular minimum voting age can be retained, for example 16 or 18 years. Younger people, however, could also take part in elections if they had themselves entered in the electoral register, in which all those eligible to vote would still be listed after reaching the minimum voting age.

A distinction must be made between the right to vote by proxy or the right to vote for parents ( family option ), according to which parents should be assigned the corresponding number of additional votes based on the number of their children under 18 years of age. The problem with family suffrage is that the electoral principles: immediacy , secrecy , equality and freedom of choice could be violated.

Discussion in Germany

Constitutional situation

The German constitution, the Basic Law , stipulates in Art. 38 Paragraph 2 that only Germans who are eighteen years of age or older may vote. So the constitution would have to be changed for children to vote.

In the run-up to the 1998 Bundestag election , a young person tried to put himself on the electoral roll. The district electoral office in Berlin-Mitte issued a formal rejection notice . The general election was contested. The Bundestag itself rejected the challenge, after which the applicant lodged an objection. The Federal Constitutional Court finally dealt with the content of the demand for the right to vote for children: The challenge was rejected and essentially justified with two points:

  • An age limit for the right to vote is "historically confirmed".
  • A restriction of electoral principles such as the general public of the election (i.e. the exclusion of under 18-year-olds) is compatible if it is done for “compelling reasons”.

The Federal Constitutional Court in the wording:

“You have not shown a violation of the principle of the general public of choice. [...] Limitations of the general right to vote are constitutionally permissible if there is a compelling reason for them ”. For compelling reasons, it has been considered compatible with the principle of the general public of elections that the exercise of the right to vote is linked to the attainment of a minimum age. In this context, the Federal Constitutional Court stated in an earlier decision: “Constitutional principles cannot, as a rule, simply be put into practice; it is sufficient for them if the exceptions are limited to the unavoidable minimum. The principle of democracy and the narrower principle of the general public of elections are not violated by the introduction of a minimum age ”.

Elsewhere it stated:

"An exclusion from the right to vote can be constitutionally justified if it can be assumed for a certain group of people that the opportunity to participate in the communication process between the people and state organs is not sufficient."

Minors are considered one such group of people.

Efforts to change the electoral law

Among other things, the Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations , the Krätzä children's rights project , the German Family Association and the German Children's Fund advocate child suffrage in Germany.

In 1995, a 16 and a 13 year old, supported by Krätzä, an initiative for children's rights, filed a constitutional complaint . A lawyer formulated the contradiction between Article 38, Paragraph 2 of the Basic Law: “Anyone who has reached the age of eighteen is entitled to vote; [...] ". and the principle of democracy: “All state authority comes from the people. It is exercised by the people in elections and votes. ”However, this was not admitted to the negotiation with the reference that the existing deadline for complaining against laws for the constitution had already expired in 1950.

In 1998, a 17-year-old member of the same initiative submitted an application for entry in the electoral register for the Bundestag election. This, as well as the objection to the rejection, was rejected. The subsequent lawsuit at the administrative court was rejected for the formal reason that the court was not allowed to intervene in the Bundestag election .

Again activists from Krätzä then lodged an election review complaint with the Bundestag in 1998 with the help of the same lawyer, which was supposed to challenge the validity of the Bundestag election. The complaint was denied and a constitutional complaint was filed. However, this was rejected in 2000 as "obviously unfounded" without justification.

In November 2013, eleven children and young people between the ages of 9 and 17 filed an objection to the Bundestag election at the election review committee of the German Bundestag, initiated by climate activist Felix Finkbeiner (15) and the author Wolfgang Gründinger (29) from the Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations . The young people had previously gone to the electoral office, had demanded their right to vote and were rejected. The Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations then submitted an election review complaint to the Federal Constitutional Court to abolish the minimum voting age. In 2016 the complaint was dismissed.

In addition, relevant motions were submitted to the Bundestag twice, both of which were rejected. In 2003, in the motion: “Dare to be more democratic through the right to vote from birth”, 47 MPs called for voting rights from birth. In 2008 there were 36 MPs with the motion "Giving the future a voice - For voting rights from birth"

In 2014 Renate Schmidt published her book “Let our children choose”. She is also the patron of the “only whoever counts” campaign that the German Family Association organized to accompany the 2017 federal election .

In 2019, the campaign “# lasstsiewleichen / # lasstmichwahl”, organized by the Youth Council of the Generations Foundation, promoted voting rights from birth.

In 1995, the voting age for local elections in Lower Saxony was reduced to 16 years, followed by many other federal states, as well as the lowering of the voting age for state elections to 16 years in Bremen in 2009, then in 2011 in Brandenburg and finally in 2013 in Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein.

Per arguments

Duty of democracy theory

“All state power emanates from the people and is exercised by the people in elections and votes”, says the Basic Law (Art. 20). This unchangeable article of the Basic Law forms the principle of democracy and declares popular sovereignty . Minors actually also belong to the " people ", provided they have German citizenship. Whether this article is in a hierarchy over Article 38, Paragraph 2 of the Basic Law: “Whoever has reached the age of eighteen is entitled to vote; […] ”And thus makes it illegal is controversial.

According to the Federal Constitutional Court, the right to vote “must not be made dependent on special conditions that cannot be met by everyone (property, income, tax payment, education, position in life)”. It is therefore not allowed to "exclude certain population groups from exercising the right to vote for political, economic or social reasons"

In addition: "The general right to vote can only be restricted for compelling reasons."

The reason given by the Federal Constitutional Court as to why it is not illegal to exclude minors from voting is the inability to communicate between voters and the state.

Nor may the right to vote be made dependent on intellectual abilities or the political education of the voter. Therefore, politically disinterested, very old, dementia , illiterate or heavily drunk people are also allowed to vote.

In addition, the prohibition of age discrimination prohibits an upper age limit, i.e. a maximum voting age in elections. Proponents of child suffrage suggest that the same should apply to the exclusion of minors from voting because of their minority.

The right to vote is a fundamental right and thus arises from human dignity , which children and young people are also entitled to. If the legislation denied groups of people the right to vote, "[they] would become an object of state action [...] and lose their identity as a person", say critics.

Children's insight and responsibility

According to the proponents, a lack of knowledge about politics is not a reason to exclude people from the right to vote, because in a democracy there should be no knowledge tests. The word “eligibility for election” is nowhere defined and is not checked by anyone else. Nobody has ever asked a 30-, 50- or 90-year-old to take a political knowledge test. There is also no upper age limit, although you could invent reasons for it. Even the legal restriction that applies until the beginning of 2019, according to which people with dementia lose their right to vote if they have been provided with a permanent supervisor to handle all matters (formerly Section 13 No. 2 BWahlG), was declared unconstitutional by the Federal Constitutional Court.

More intergenerational justice

Proponents of child suffrage argue that introducing it would take the interests of young people more into account in politics . The parties would be forced to do more for these interests. At the moment the elderly are overrepresented because there is an age limit downwards, but usually none upwards.

The right to vote and other age limits are not linked

This article or the following section is not adequately provided with supporting documents ( e.g. individual evidence ). Information without sufficient evidence could be removed soon. Please help Wikipedia by researching the information and including good evidence.
In addition, only the situation in Germany or Europe is actually addressed here

The voting age is not necessarily linked to the age of majority in criminal and civil law. As early as 1970 to 1975, age of majority and voting age fell apart when only the active voting age was lowered to 18 years, but age remained unchanged at 21 years. In 2007, Austria lowered the voting age to 16 at federal level and left the age of majority at 18.

Age limits in criminal and civil law, such as alcohol and cigarette consumption, serve to protect young people. The right to vote, on the other hand, does not represent a health or development-endangering matter from which young people should be protected. In addition, young people are entrusted with responsibility early on in many areas of life. Age of religion and criminal responsibility as adolescents start at the age of 14. From the age of 16 marriages are possible under certain conditions. At 17 you can sign up as a soldier in the Bundeswehr. From the age of one, the right to demonstrate applies without restrictions.

Contra arguments

Lack of political maturity

According to the prevailing opinion, the ability of children to understand and take responsibility only develops in the course of childhood. Therefore, there are widely accepted age limits for rights and duties that take into account the ability to discern and take responsibility. This applies, for example, for the age of criminal responsibility , legal capacity , tort ability and testamentary capacity . Since participation in the election also requires insight and responsibility, all existing voting rights systems provide for a minimum age for exercising the right to vote. Accordingly, adults are also not allowed to vote if they lack this ability to understand and take responsibility. This can affect people with certain disabilities and diseases.

If children are to have a say in society, too, according to the opinion of those who oppose child suffrage, they would have to be mature enough to determine their own private life independently. As a consequence, children should also be allowed to smoke. The protection of minors and other laws regulate this very differently today: young people are only allowed to visit nightclubs until midnight without the permission of their parents. In the case of criminal offenses, the mitigating circumstances of juvenile criminal law are applied. Marriages are only permitted if one of the spouses is of legal age and a family court has approved.

In the opinion of the opponents, it would be absurd if minors were to be mature enough to have a say in the welfare and woes of society, but at the same time not to be mature enough to decide about their own lives. Only when they come of age do young people have responsibility for their own lives and, as a result, for society. Legal age and the right to vote are therefore related. All other age limits, such as something from 14 or 16 (or even zero), would therefore be arbitrary.

Political knowledge lower among young people

Young people under 18 have a significantly lower level of political knowledge than those older than 18 years. This was shown, for example, by a political comprehension test published by the University of Hohenheim in 2008. There, the under 18-year-olds performed much worse than older respondents.

See also

literature

Web links

Advocates

Opposing positions

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Wolfgang Gründinger, Felix Finkbeiner: Young people also want to vote! In: The time. No. 39/2013; Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations, background paper
  2. ↑ Patrick Christian Otto: Simple legal and constitutional limits of the introduction of a family option . In: J§E Law Studies & Exams . Trade journal. 1st edition. Edition 3.Tübingen 2015, p. 245-248 .
  3. ↑ BVerfGE 28, 220, <225>; 36, 139 <141>
  4. ↑ BVerfGE 42, 312 <340 and 340>
  5. ↑ a b BVerfGE 2 BvC 62/14
  6. ↑ Art. 38, para. 2 GG
  7. ↑ Art. 20 GG
  8. ^ The judgment of the Federal Constitutional Court of January 8, 1996. 2 BvR 1917/95. Retrieved November 5, 2019 .
  9. ^ Robert Rostoski: Application for entry in the electoral register. Krätzä, May 4, 1997, accessed March 6, 2020 .
  10. ^ Robert Rostoski: Objection to the refusal to be included in the electoral register. Opposition / your letter dated July 14, 1997 / Ref. PV IV 100. Krätzä, August 11, 1997, accessed on March 6, 2020 .
  11. ↑ IA Dr. Schreiber: Rejection of the application for entry in the electoral register. krätzä, July 14, 1997, accessed on March 6, 2020 (rejection of the application by the Berlin district election office).
  12. ↑ Zeller: Rejection of the objection to the negative decision of the district office to the application for entry in the electoral register. Your objection dated August 11, 1997 regarding the refusal to register your client Robert Rostoski in the electoral roll for the election to the 14th German Bundestag. Krätzä, January 28, 1998, accessed on March 6, 2020 (by District Office Mitte von Berlin - The District Mayor).
  13. ↑ Press release - Contestation of the Bundestag election announced. Krätzä, August 27, 1998, accessed March 6, 2020 .
  14. ↑ Press release dismissing the lawsuit. Lawsuit for the right to vote for children again dismissed for formal reasons. Krätzä, September 14, 1998, accessed March 6, 2020 .
  15. ↑ § 24 sentence 2 BVerfGG
  16. ↑ Children have no choice The Federal Constitutional Court denies children and young people the basic political right to participation. KinderRÄchTsZÄnker announce further campaigns. Krätzä, November 14th, 2000, accessed on March 6th, 2020 : “The Federal Constitutional Court rejected the complaint of three young people's election review complaint without an oral hearing. They had questioned the validity of the 1998 Bundestag elections because of the exclusion of those under the age of 18 from the right to vote. "
  17. ^ Notice of opposition and further information
  18. ↑ Michael Quaas: Complaint on election examination according to § 48 BVerfGG. (PDF) Law firm Quaas und Partner, accessed on March 6, 2020 .
  19. ^ Peter Müller: Complaint in the election examination of Mr. Wolfgang Gründingers u. a. of July 18, 2014 against the decision of the German Bundestag of May 8, 2014 - WP 179/13 / -. (PDF) Federal Constitutional Court, January 26, 2016, pp. 2–6 , accessed on March 6, 2020 (file number: 2 BvC 23/14).
  20. ↑ German Bundestag, motion - Dare more democracy through voting rights from birth, in: H. Heenemann GmbH & Co. (Ed.), 15th electoral period, printed matter 15/1544, Bundesanzeiger Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Berlin, 2003.
  21. ↑ German Bundestag, motion - Giving the future a vote - For voting rights from birth, in: H. Heenemann GmbH & Co. (Ed.), 16th electoral period, printed matter 16/9868, Bundesanzeiger Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, Berlin, 2008.
  22. ↑ Renate Schmidt: Let our children choose . 1st edition. Munich 2013.
  23. ↑ Right to vote from birth - only those who vote count. Deutscher Familienverband eV, accessed on March 6, 2020 (website of the campaign with relevant information).
  24. ^ Right to vote for everyone. Generations Foundation gGmbH, accessed on April 3, 2020 .
  25. ^ Baden-Württemberg, Brandenburg, Bremen, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saxony-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thuringia
  26. ^ Wilko Zicht: Overview of the electoral systems in local elections. In: wahlrecht.de (elections, suffrage and voting systems). May 21, 2018, accessed March 18, 2020 .
  27. ↑ Bremisches election law (BremWahlG). In: https://www.transparenz.bremen.de/ (Transparency Portal Bremen). The Senator for Finance of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, May 3, 1955, accessed on March 18, 2020 .
  28. ↑ Article 38.2 of the Basic Law
  29. ↑ a b BVerfGE 58, 202/205; see. Jarass / Pierot 1992, Art. 38 Rn. 5; Maunz / Dürig 2003, Art. 38 Rn. 39
  30. ↑ BVerfGE, inquiry of July 5th, 2000, 2 BvC 2/99, Krätzä, p. 2.
  31. ↑ Art 38 I GG: "The members of the Bundestag are elected by general [...] elections."
  32. ↑ a b Federal Constitutional Court, 2nd Senate: decision of January 29, 2019, p. 3/44. (PDF) In: Judgment text. Federal Constitutional Court, January 29, 2019, accessed on July 11, 2019 .
  33. ↑ Article 3, Paragraph 3 of the Basic Law; Art. 2 and 21 of the UN Declaration of Human Rights
  34. ↑ BVerfGE 1, 208/242: "Basic political right"
  35. ↑ Häberle 1987, §20 Rn. 69, emphasis added
  36. ↑ Wolfgang Gründinger: Right to vote without age limit Democratic-theoretical, youth-sociological and political backgrounds of an overdue reform . Ed .: Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations. 2013, p. 6 .
  37. ↑ Background paper of the Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations
  38. ↑ Stephan Eisel: Written statement on the hearing of the constitutional and district committee of the Hamburg citizenship on October 28, 2011 on the subject of "lowering the active voting age to 16". St. Augustin 2011.
  39. ↑ Jan Kercher: Understanding of politics and voting age. Is 18 years really the “magic limit” for understanding politics? University of Hohenheim, 2008.