16 and 17-year-olds win the right to vote in local elections for Vermont town

By Nicole Townsend

Photo courtesy of Creative Commons

In Brattleboro, Vermont, 16 and 17-year-olds are given the right to vote in a local election taking place next week. Those who turn 18 by November’s general election will be allowed to vote in the state’s presidential primaries, which will take place on Super Tuesday.

This means that voters in the small town of Vermont could have a say in significant party nominees of more than 60-year-olds while President Joe Biden, who is 81, is running for the Democratic Party. Donald Trump, who is 77, is running for the Republican Party.

The change to Brattleboro’s charter required legislative approval. The governor, who is Republican, rejected it twice. However, the Democratic-controlled Legislature overrode the veto last year and gave Brattleboro’s teenagers the right to cast ballots.