Mladi i izbori – budućnost EU
Youth and Elections – The Future of the EU

Author(s): Bogoljub J. Karić
Subject(s): Electoral systems, EU-Approach / EU-Accession / EU-Development
Published by: IFIMES Mednarodni inštitut za bližnjevzhodne in balkanske študije
Keywords: EU-elections;
Summary/Abstract: Elections for the European Parliament will be held in June 2024. Countries such as Austria, Belgium, Malta and Germany have allowed 16-year-olds to participate in elections. Greece has set a similar age limit of 17. Already in 2014, Scotland allowed 16-year-olds to participate in the referendum on Scottish independence. However, there are still many EU countries that do not allow those under the age of 18 to vote in European Parliament elections. Of course, this also applies to countries outside the European Union, eg Serbia. The European Union is close to young people, so it would be reasonable to think about allowing young people in all member states to vote when they turn 16 years old. This would not bring with it negative financial consequences, but at the same time it would represent a big step forward in the direction of a more inclusive, democratic society. The reasons for making the decision are that the right to vote, both in parliamentary and local elections, is a basic inalienable political human right-active status and forms the core of democratic, plural, modern legal states and local communities. However, the natural right to vote is not absolute and may be subject to various restrictions. Its limitation thus narrows the legitimacy of social decisions, which are all the more legitimate if the participation of the widest range of individuals, citizens, is enabled in their making. The historical review serves us as an example of inadmissible restrictions on both active and passive voting rights, which at first glance seem to have been overcome by a modern and "mature" society.

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