Twenty-Sixth Amendment

Section 1:

The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.

Section 2:

The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Congress debated the language that would become the Twenty-Sixth Amendment in March 1971. At the time, nine states maintained minimum voting ages under 21, and many other states were considering lower voting ages.1 During Senate debates, proponents of the draft amendment argued that young voters were mature and knowledgeable enough to vote; that they had already assumed many of the responsibilities of adult citizenship; and that they would be able to play a “constructive role in the political process.” 2 Proponents also cited concerns about a dual-age voting system for federal elections as compared to all other elections.3 The Senate passed the joint resolution unanimously.4

House debates explored many of the same themes as the Senate debates, including young persons’ knowledge and responsibilities at age 18 and concerns about the impracticality and expense of maintaining a dual-age voting system.5 Proponents also argued that lowering the voting age would help to combat voter apathy that might result from delaying young persons’ access to the franchise for a few years after they had assumed adult responsibilities.6

Individual representatives also offered their interpretations of the draft amendment’s provisions. For instance, Representative Emanuel Celler of New York, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, contended that the right to “vote” protected in Section 1 of the proposed amendment would encompass “all action necessary to make a vote effective in any primary, special or general election.” 7 Celler further observed that Section 2 of the draft amendment mirrored congressional enforcement clauses in other provisions of the Constitution.8

Representative Richard Poff of Virginia stated that the “right to vote” protected by the amendment would encompass “the entire process by which the people make their political choices,” including participation in primary, special, and general elections for federal, state, and local offices; nomination of candidates by petition or convention; ballot initiatives; and recall elections.9 Poff expressed the view that the amendment would prohibit age discrimination against any age group of adult voters (e.g., adults over the age of 65)10 but would not nullify federal or state laws establishing a minimum age for holding political office.11 Poff observed that, unlike Title III of the Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1970, which had attempted to lower the minimum voting age in all elections, the draft amendment would prohibit government restrictions on young citizens’ exercise of the franchise that fell short of completely denying them the right to vote.12

Opponents of the draft Twenty-Sixth Amendment argued that the states possessed primary constitutional authority to determine who could vote in state and local elections.13 Some opponents argued that granting young persons the right to vote would allow “transient” out-of-state college students to decide elections for college town governments.14 Other opponents argued that young voters lacked sufficient maturity, responsibility, or life experience to vote.15 Opponents also suggested that young voters would not turn out to vote in large numbers.16

After the debates concluded, the House approved the amendment in the form of H.J. Res. 223 by a vote of 401 to 19.17 It then called up an identical Senate joint resolution, S.J. Res. 7, and passed it by the requisite two-thirds vote, laying its own joint resolution on the table.18

Footnotes

1

S. Rep. No. 92-26, at 3 (1971).

2

See, e.g., 117 Cong. Rec. 5489 (1971) (statement of Sen. Bayh); id. at 5817 (statement of Sen. Percy).

3

E.g., id. at 5515 (statement of Sen. Randolph).

4

Id. at 5830 (recording a vote of 94 to 0).

5

E.g., id. at 7533 (statement of Rep. Celler); id. at 7534 (statement of Rep. Poff); id. at 7550 (statement of Rep. Biaggi); id. (statement of Rep. Leggett).

6

Id. at 7549 (statement of Rep. Scheuer).

7

Id. at 7533 (defining “vote” to include “registration or other action required by law prerequisite to voting, casting a ballot, or having such ballot counted properly and included in the totals of votes cast with respect to candidates for public or party office and propositions for which votes are received in an election” ).

8

Id. See also, e.g., U.S. Const. amends. XV, XIX.

9

117 Cong. Rec. 7535 (1971) (statement of Rep. Poff); see also id. at 7540 (statement of Rep. Wiggins) ( “The act of voting, to which the amendment is addressed, encompasses, as I read it, the full range of rights to participate in the election process.” ).

10

Id. at 7534 (statement of Rep. Poff) ( “In this regard, the proposed amendment would protect not only an 18-year-old, but also the 88-year-old.” ).

11

Id. at 7535.

12

Id.

13

See, e.g., id. at 7536 (statement of Rep. Poage); id. at 7544 (statement of Rep. Mayne).

14

E.g., id. at 7538 (statement of Rep. Michel).

15

E.g., id. at 7545–46 (statement of Rep. Schmitz); id. at 7562 (statement of Rep. Goldwater).

16

Id. (statement of Rep. Goldwater).

17

Id. at 7569–70.

18

Id. at 7570.