Vote16 Culver City Remarks on Razor-thin Election Loss
CULVER CITY, CA – Despite heavy opposition, Vote16 Culver City’s youth-led efforts to lower the voting age were narrowly defeated by a margin of only 16 votes.
High school youth activists in Culver City led the movement to lower the voting age and get Measure VY on the ballot, which would have lowered the age requirement from 18 years of age to 16 for Culver City and Culver City Unified School District Board elections.
“While this result isn’t what we hoped for, we are incredibly proud of how close Measure VY came and we are grateful for those who supported us in reaching this milestone. Our Culver City campaign will continue fighting for teen enfranchisement. Regardless of votes cast this November, Measure VY stands for a future where youth are involved in advocating for the policies they would like to see. This is a future that 8,293 Culver City voters already envision. That is a victory in itself,” said Ada Meighan-Thiel, a senior at Culver City High School who helped organize the efforts to lower the voting age in Culver City.
The movement to lower the voting age to 16 has seen significant victories in the past, including in Berkeley and Oakland, California, as well Takoma Park and Hyattsville, Maryland.
“People nationwide and especially in California see the logic and value of lowering the voting age to 16. They are old enough to drive cars, and they are old enough to pay taxes on wages at their part-time jobs, so they should be old enough to vote. ” said Chuck Corra, Associate Director of Coalitions & Policy Research at Generation Citizen.
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Vote16 Culver City is part of a larger effort on behalf of Vote16USA – a national campaign, organized by Generation Citizen, that aims to support efforts to lower the voting age on the local level, help start new local campaigns, and elevate the issue’s prominence on a national level.