Which amendment lowered the voting age to 18?

• A. The Nineteenth Amendment
• B. The Twenty-Third Amendment
• C. The Twenty-Fifth Amendment
• D. The Twenty-Sixth Amendment

Answer: (D)

Lowering the voting age to 18 is the focus here. The Twenty-Sixth Amendment, ratified in 1971, prohibits denying the right to vote to citizens who are eighteen years of age or older on account of age. This change means the minimum voting age is 18 for federal elections and, in practice, for most state and local elections as well. The move reflected the argument that 18-year-olds could be drafted for military service, so they should have a voice in choosing their leaders.

For context, the Nineteenth Amendment gave women the right to vote, the Twenty-Third Amendment gave residents of Washington, D.C. the right to vote in presidential elections, and the Twenty-Fifth Amendment deals with presidential succession and disability.