By Gunnar Schupelius
A year ago, the Christian Democrats opposed lowering the voting age to 16. Now they want to vote for it. That doesn’t convince anyone, says Gunnar Schupelius.
The Berlin CDU suddenly joins the chorus of those who want to lower the voting age. That comes as a complete surprise. A reasonable justification is not provided. Apparently they want to please the SPD.
A year and a half ago, in autumn 2021, the SPD, Greens and Left Party decided to lower the voting age from 18 to 16. But they lacked the necessary two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives. A year ago, the FDP swung to the red-green-red course, but that was not enough for the required majority.
CDU and AfD refused. “We will stick to the voting age of 18,” said the then CDU parliamentary group leader and current Governing Mayor Kai Wegner in May 2022. He justified the Union’s position as follows: “The age limit has been established and proven nationally and internationally.”
From the point of view of the CDU, the right to vote should therefore continue to be linked to the age of majority and thus also to full legal capacity. Wegner: “It would be illogical on the one hand to be allowed to vote, but on the other hand not to be able to conclude a mobile phone contract without the consent of the parents.”
This justification made sense. Why lower the age of consent for political elections when it stays at 18 for all other important decisions?
Maturity means taking full responsibility for one’s own actions, including bearing the consequences, which can be momentous. A democratic election can be very momentous.
SPD, Greens, Left and FDP claim that young people are not taken seriously if they are not allowed to vote. But that’s not true. They are heard, but the decision is taken from them until they come of age, just like many other decisions. This paternalism is an advantage, it is like a shelter in which one can live more freely than later when the burden of all responsibility weighs heavily on one.
So far, the CDU and AfD have put forward very convincing arguments why the voting age limit should remain at 18. The Berlin CDU is now giving up its arguments to accommodate the SPD. Was this necessary? Why wasn’t it the other way around? Why was the Union unable to convince its coalition partner SPD of its own opinion?
In five out of 16 federal states, the voting age limit has already been lowered to 16 at the instigation of the Greens and Left. In the wake of this development, the Berlin CDU collapsed, finding it difficult to maintain its own profile.
Is Gunnar Schupelius right? Call: 030/2591 73153 or email: [email protected]
Read all of Gunnar Schupelius’ columns here