The D.C. Council Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety passed a bill to lower the voting age to 16 in D.C. with a unanimous 3-0 vote Thursday. 
 
 With Committee approval, the bill will now be placed on the agenda of the Nov. 13 City Council Legislative Meeting, where it will be voted on by the full council. 
 
 Vote16DC, a coalition of youth, adult allies, and organizations that support granting voting rights to 16- and 17-year-olds in the District, has spent months leading up to this committee vote mobilizing community support and educating Councilmembers on the merits of lowering DC’s voting age to 16. 
 
 “I’m really glad to see that the committee voted for this bill,” said Chloe Ifill, a Vote16DC Youth Leader and 16-year-old Ward 7 resident who attends Woodrow Wilson High School. “We’ve worked hard to get the word out by talking to other youth and meeting with Councilmembers, and it’s great to see that our voice is being heard and valued.” 
 
 The Youth Vote Amendment Act of 2018 was introduced in April by Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen, and a total of eight members of D.C. Council have announced support for the measure. 
 
 To become law, a majority of the full Council must vote in favor of the bill in two separate votes, per requirements under D.C.’s Home Rule. 
 
 “It’s exciting that we can be part of history by getting D.C. youth the right to vote,” said Helisa Cruz, a 16-year-old student at BASIS D.C. Public Charter School who lives in Ward 5 and is active in Vote16DC. “I am hopeful that when they vote on this bill, D.C. Councilmembers will make the right decision.” 
 
 The DC Office of Planning estimates that there are approximately 10,400 16- and 17-year-olds in the District, with nearly 80 percent identified as youth of color. 
 
 "DC is poised to become the first major American city to grant voting-rights to 16- and 17-year-olds,” said Vote16DC Campaign Manager Dave Chandrasekaran, a Ward 1 resident. "At a time when political discourse in this country is so divisive, it's really inspiriting to witness how passionate D.C. youth are about having a voice and positively influencing our community." 
 
 The six co-introducers joining Councilmember Allen were Councilmembers David Grasso (At-large), Anita Bonds (At-large), Robert White (At-large), Brianne Nadeau (Ward 1), Vincent Gray (Ward 7), and Trayon White (Ward 8). Councilmember Elissa Silverman (At-large) announced support for the bill in October. 
 
 “At the age of 16, your legal relationship with the government changes,” Allen said. “Young people work and pay income taxes. Some are raising a family or helping their family make ends meet. They can drive a car. Ironically, they pay fees to get a license plate that reads ‘End Taxation Without Representation.’ I think it’s time to change that.” 
 
 If approved by the D.C. Council and signed by the mayor, the bill would have to undergo the requisite 30-day congressional review period before becoming an official act. Sixteen- and 17-year-olds are already able to pre-register to vote under current D.C. law. 
 
 If the Youth Vote Amendment Act of 2018 is enacted, D.C. would become the fifth US city to have a voting age of 16, and the only jurisdiction in the country where this age group could vote in federal elections, including for president. ||||| If the bill passes in a final council vote, D.C. would become the first municipality in the country to allow minors to vote in all elections, including presidential races. 
 
 WASHINGTON — A bill that would lower the voting age for District residents from 18 to 16 cleared a committee hurdle Thursday and will advance to the full D.C. Council for a final vote. 
 
 If it passes, the nation’s capital would become the first municipality in the country to allow minors to vote in all elections, including presidential races. 
 
 Three Maryland jurisdictions — Takoma Park, Greenbelt and Hyattsville — previously lowered their voting age to 16 but only for local elections. 
 
 “Many 16-year-olds shoulder adult responsibilities and burdens,” said Council member Charles Allen, who introduced the bill in April. “They do have skin in the game in their communities. They pay taxes, they have jobs and they drive on our city streets.” 
 
 The legislation passed through the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety on a vote of 3-0. 
 
 “This bill will enfranchise the District’s young people and bring their voices into the political process,” said Allen. 
 
 Allen unsuccessfully introduced the measure in 2015 and revived it this year, inspired by high school student protests against gun violence following the Feb. 14 shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. 
 
 A public hearing in June drew dozens of young people to the Wilson Building to testify in favor of the measure. 
 
 About 70 people testified in support of the bill and nobody testified against it, according to Allen. 
 
 Supporters claim young people vote at higher rates than adults when they are given the chance, and that teens who are allowed to vote are more likely to develop a lifelong habit of voting. 
 
 Opponents argue that young people are not educated enough on the issues and are likely to simply vote however their parents vote. 
 
 “Those arguments have been completely eviscerated,” Allen said. 
 
 More than 10,000 16- and 17-year-old residents would be added to the voting rolls if the measure is passed by the full council and signed into law by Mayor Muriel Bowser. 
 
 The full council is expected to take up the bill later this month. 
 
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– Washington, DC, appears poised to become the first municipality in the nation to let 16-year-olds vote in national elections, including presidential races. A measure to lower the voting age from 18 to 16 cleared a committee last week and now heads to the full council, reports WTOP. To pass, it needs the support of a majority of the 13-member city council, and WJLA reports that eight members already have voiced their approval. While a handful of US cities allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in local elections, none grants the right in national elections. DC has an estimated 10,000 teens of that age, most of them minorities, per WJLA. “At the age of 16, your legal relationship with the government changes,” says council member Charles Allen, who introduced the measure. He points out that many 16-year-olds get jobs and begin paying taxes, and they also start driving. "Ironically, they pay fees to get a license plate that reads ‘End Taxation Without Representation.’ I think it’s time to change that.” Allen says he was inspired in part by the youth political movement that surfaced after school shootings. If passed by the council and signed by the mayor, the measure must undergo a 30-day congressional review period. (One leader of the youth political movement has big plans for himself by the age of 25.)