Measure to allow teens in Central Mass. town to vote fails by 3 votes
By a narrow margin of three votes, residents of Westborough on Saturday voted against a measure to lower the voting age in local elections.
The measure was for a home rule petition for the state legislature. The petition asked lawmakers to pass special legislation allowing 16 and 17 year olds the right to vote in town elections.
The measure was brought up during Westborough's annual town meeting at the Westborough High School on Saturday. Of the 193 people who voted, 95 voted in favor of the petition, while 98 voted against. As the results were read aloud, sounds of shock and disappointment rang throughout the auditorium, with one person saying "are you kidding?!"
The measure was brought forward by a Westborough High School student club called Westborough Votes 16. Members of the club told residents that young people are directly impacted by local issues in town, such as school budgets, infrastructure and public health.
"Young people are also frequent users of town resources, like the library, recreation programs and the community center," said senior Ava Wallace. "Because we actively use these spaces, we can bring a unique and valuable perspective."
The group also conducted a poll among Westborough High School students about representation in town government. Of the 132 respondents who took the poll, 63.6% feel that decisions in local government affect their daily life but only 31.1% say feel that their views and perspectives are adequately represented in local government. The poll was conducted on March 13 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 8%.
"Students do feel that they aren't being fully represented in the town government process," said junior Gerhard Doering. "That was something that we saw and we wanted to take the opportunity to correct."
The students also argued that giving 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote would help build habits of continued civic participation.
Many of the residents who commented during the meeting agreed with the students, expressing their support for the measure.
"If we want young people to stay in town, we need to give them a voice to let them tell us how the town should develop into the future," said resident John Gelcich.
Resident Lydia Groves, a member of the town's youth commission, also spoke in favor of the measure and brought a letter from the other commission members — all of whom unanimously support lowering the voting age.
"We believe that the voices of 16 and 17 year olds are not only valuable but essential," she said. "In our work, we have seen firsthand the positive impact that these perspectives have on local policy."
Resident Dan Klein, however, spoke out against the measure.
"I do not believe 16 and 17 year olds are at a level of experience, understanding and knowledge about finance," he said. "Especially with the challenge of financial literacy that we have throughout."
Dominic Caprioli also expressed opposition to the measure, saying that the teenagers won't feel any consequences until they are older.
"So you are going to make decisions and you are going to think that they are effective and the consequences are in the immediate time frame," Caprioli said. "But the consequences take time to come into play and act out."
Twelve other communities, including Acton, Boston, Brookline, Cambridge, Concord, Lexington and Southborough, were able to pass home rule petitions and send them to the state Legislature. Those petitions, however, have not been acted upon.
Regardless, Westborough Votes 16 looks to continue its work, despite the outcome.
"We don't plan to stop here regardless of what the results are today," said Doering. "We want to talk on the state level about getting this to municipal elections."
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