In a recent press conference, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi made some comments about wanting to lower the voting age to 16. She explained her reasoning, saying it was important to engage young people when they are still in high school and are interested in politics and government. She said she feels that getting kids involved in the voting process at the age of 16 is a good way to increase voter turnout and allow young people to have more of a vote when it comes to politics.

Although I can see where she is coming from and agree that these are some valid points, I do not think it is in the best interest of our country to lower the voting age to 16.

In my opinion, most 16-year-olds are not mature or informed enough to be making important decisions about who runs our country. This idea of Pelosi’s was met with a lot of criticism on Twitter, where users were sharing stupid things they were doing at 16, showing how immature people are at this age and how unprepared they are to be voting.

Although I realize that 18 is only a two-year age difference from 16, I do think there is a lot of maturity and growth that occurs during this time. Being a sophomore in high school versus being a senior in high school is very different. Seniors in high school are preparing to go into the real world and deal with the consequences of the decisions that our public figures make. Sophomores in high school, however, are typically still in the comfort of their own home and do not really have to think about how laws and policies will affect them.

You cannot buy cigarettes, get a piercing without your parents’ permission or play the lottery until you are 18. In my opinion, voting is more important than all of these things, and has a much bigger effect on the lives of everyone in this country.

Voting is one of the most vital roles a citizen of this country has. The people we vote for has a direct effect on the lives of everyone in America, and I think lowering the voting age to 16 would take away from the sanctity of this practice.