Munich (dpa / lby) – The right to vote in Bavaria will remain as it is for the time being. On Thursday in the state parliament, the CSU, Free Voters and AfD prevented a change in the law with their dissenting votes, which, among other things, called for the voting age to be lowered to 16. The critics countered that minors could not see the consequences of their political decisions. For the time being, the minimum age for election to the prime minister of 40, which is enshrined in the constitution, will not be shaken.
“Good politics is not a question of age,” said Green MP Johannes Becher. Arbitrarily determined age discrimination should finally be abolished. “Of course, people under the age of 40 can lead a government.” This can be seen abroad, where French President Emmanuel Macron, for example, was elected to office at the age of 39. Becher accused the CSU in particular of only wanting to prevent the election of Green party leader Katharina Schulze (37) with the age limit.
The SPD and the FDP also vehemently rejected the argument that minors lack the intellectual maturity. One could very well trust the young people with this responsibility, said Arif Tasdelen (SPD). He accused the CSU of only rejecting the application because they want to propose a reduction “soon” themselves.
The demand for voting rights from the age of 16 is not new. In the past, corresponding applications have failed several times due to a lack of approval by the conservative parliamentary groups.
FDP parliamentary group leader Martin Hagen also complained that the majority of the state parliament rejected the unrestricted religious majority from the age of 14, which was also called for in the Greens’ application. It cannot be the case that they are allowed to leave a religious community but cannot decide without their parents whether they would rather attend ethics classes at school than religion classes.
