Elections - Voting age for Berlin House of Representatives to be lowered to 16
In Berlin, 16 and 17-year-olds will also be allowed to vote in the state parliament in future. On Thursday evening, the House of Representatives voted by a large majority to amend the constitution to lower the voting age from 18 to 16. This will strengthen democracy and give younger people more political participation, argue the supporters of the CDU, SPD, Greens and Left Party.
"Young people have to bear the political consequences for the longest time. Now they will also be involved in the decisions," said Green politician Klara Schedlich, who, according to her parliamentary group, is the youngest member of the state parliament at the age of 23. "We have a reason to celebrate today, all democrats in this House." The AfD rejected the plan.
According to the "Mehr Demokratie" association, Berlin is the seventh federal state in which people aged 16 and over can vote at state level. This is expected to be the case for the first time in 2026 in the election to the House of Representatives.
According to the Senate, 16 and 17-year-old German citizens would increase the number of people eligible to vote for the state parliament and thus also for referendums by around 50,000 from the current figure of around 2.44 million - i.e. by around two percent.
Until now, 16 and 17-year-olds have been able to vote in elections to Berlin's district assemblies, i.e. the local parliaments. Following a change in the law at federal level, this will also apply to European elections, for the first time in 2024.
According to the constitution, all Germans who have reached the age of 18 on the day of the election and have had their main place of residence in Berlin for at least three months were previously eligible to vote for the state parliament. All eligible voters who have reached the age of 18 on the day of the election can be elected to parliament.
The latter point, the so-called passive right to vote, will not change: in future, people will only be able to stand for election to the state parliament if they are 18 or over.
Constitutional amendment Voting age 16
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- The CDU, SPD, Greens, and Left Party, who are members of the Berlin state parliament, believe that lowering the voting age to 16 will strengthen democracy and give younger people more political participation.
- Klara Schedlich, the youngest member of the Berlin state parliament at the age of 23 and a Green politician, celebrated the decision to lower the voting age, stating that it was a significant step towards involving young people in political decisions.
- The SPD, one of the political parties in Germany, supports the lowering of the voting age in Berlin to 16, which would make it the seventh federal state where 16 and 17-year-olds can vote at state level, expected to be implemented in the 2026 House of Representatives election.
- The change in the voting age law in Berlin means that 16 and 17-year-old German citizens will have the active right to vote in the state parliament elections and referendums, increasing the eligible voters count by around 50,000, according to the Senate.
Source: www.stern.de
