by Thomas Reiner, Quartz Mountain Commentary, ©2025
(Dec. 10, 2025) — Amendment XXVI:
Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.
Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
The XXVI Amendment was ratified in 1971, giving the vote to 18-20 year olds. The impetus for granting the vote was the military draft during the Vietnam War. The main argument at that time was that youth could be drafted to fight in a war that they had no say in. It was a specious argument in that only a small minority were drafted by 1971 and the military was to become an all-volunteer army in 1973.
There are many legal restrictions that affect 18-year-olds who are blessed with half-formed minds. For example, it is illegal to purchase and drink alcohol, purchase tobacco products in some states, go to a casino and rent a vehicle. There are valid reasons why this is so, but the main reason is that 18-year-olds are allowed to be numbskulls without repercussions, unlike the rest of us. Those 18-20 years old should not be able to vote.
Eighteen-year-olds typically haven’t acquired real-world experiences and will tend to bend to the political winds of the day. Today, “Democratic Socialism” sounds cool…until you try it. Mamdani was recently elected mayor of New York City by promising free stuff. They would vote for Bozo the Clown even though it would end with a pie tossed in their face. People of all ages have a simpleton demographic, but 18-year-olds represent a giant spike because they think they know everything. They don’t pay rent and most still depend on mommy and daddy for the room in the basement or the dormitory room paid by their tuition. They have been indoctrinated by their teachers throughout elementary, high school and college. I am a prime example. I took “Comparative Revolutionary Development” and “TV-AntiTV” in college and it turned me into a raving Liberal until I found a cure for this nonsense and eventually became a Republican.
That cure is called a job. There is nothing more eye-opening than receiving your first paycheck only to wonder where all the money went before you got yours. That sobering event starts the young person on the road to growing up. It is nice but destructive to vote for politicians who promise everything but deliver nothing. An adult, 21 or over, has a more stable foundation on which to make better voting decisions.
The XXVI amendment was a huge mistake. It favors the Democratic Party and that is why some of those demagogues even wish to consolidate further power by lowering the voting age to 16, an age that would elect Barbie as President. The extra three years after 18 allow people to mature. It is time to get rid of this amendment, which is the worst since Prohibition. The only exception to the abolition of the amendment is to allow all members of the armed forces in good standing to vote. They have skin in the game and have willingly volunteered their very lives to defend our great country. Let kids be kids until it is time to grow up. Adults tend to make more rational decisions. Get rid of XXVI.