- Bill would allow 16-year-olds to vote in certain local elections, proposed by Sen. Terrell McKinney to boost youth civic engagement.
- Neighbors are split: some say teens are informed and ready, while others worry they need more education about government and voting.
- Proposal includes funding for youth voter education programs, and McKinney plans to introduce the bill at the start of the legislative session.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
I spent the day talking with neighbors in North Omaha — and across the metro — about an idea from North Omaha State Senator Terrell McKinney that would allow 16-year-olds to vote in certain local elections. Some neighbors say the proposal is exciting. Others wonder whether high school students are ready to make decisions that affect everyone.
McKinney says the goal is simple: get young people paying attention — and participating — in local government.
“We’re preparing them to be tomorrow’s leaders… and what better way than to get them involved in the political process,” McKinney said. Because McKinney regularly works with teens, I asked him whether he believes 16-year-olds are responsible enough to vote.
“I think so. I have conversations with high schools all the time, and a lot of them are very educated and paying attention to what’s going on,” he said.
McKinney believes allowing teens to vote in local races could spark early civic engagement and build life-long habits.
So, I asked metro parents what they thought.
Ramsey Essex said he’s open to the idea.
“I’m not opposed to it… they have more access to more technology and more information. So I’d say, I’d be open-minded about it.”
But Tina Biteghe Bi-Nong says the plan raises important questions.
“It’s one thing to give them the right to vote… but what are they doing? Is there going to be some funding to educate those people, or will there be a new mandate in school systems?”
For 25-year-old Devin Williams, the question felt personal. I asked whether he would trust his 16-year-old self to vote.
“I think I was mature enough to vote… but I think I didn’t know what to do or who to go to," said Williams.
McKinney told me his proposal will include funding for youth voter education programs to help address those concerns.
Still, Tina worries many teens simply don’t understand how government works — yet.
“I enjoy empowering kids and there are kids that are well-informed but a lot are not," said Biteghe Bi-Nong. "It’s amazing they don’t even understand the government from local, state to federal.”Williams says the outcome could go either way."
“Worst case scenario, it gets passed and there’s not as much involvement as we wanted," said Williams. "Best case scenario, we get an outpouring of young kids that want to help out and do something in the community.”
Essex believes starting earlier might prevent confusion later in life.
“They need to be more involved— the sooner the better, instead of them becoming 25-year-olds and they don’t even know what’s going on.”
For now, McKinney says this is one of several bills he plans to introduce during the upcoming legislative session. He expects to formally introduce the teen voting bill on Wednesday — the first day lawmakers return to Lincoln. In North Omaha — I’m Melissa Wright.
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