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Paxton Retchless  

Mr. Ventura  

ENG 1540 

13 October 2020  

Issue Proposal

With the upcoming presidential election, people are talking about voting. Many people

believe voting is crucial for the nation, and everyone who is able, should vote. A question

forming around voting is who should be able to vote? Should this category be broadened, or is it

fine as is? The question I specifically have is should the voting age be lowered to sixteen? I do

not have a clear answer to this question because I simply do not know enough yet about the

topic, but I do know the topic is researchable, debatable, and sustainable. The prevalence and

constant discussion of voting in the United States today makes the topic a highly interesting and

engaging topic to write about for a semester. My research can consist of multiple aspects that

will contribute to finding an answer to the question. The question is easily debatable because

people can argue many different things about the maturity of sixteen-year olds. As I am only

seventeen years old, but wish I had the ability to vote, this issue is highly engaging to me. Also,

voting is something that will be around in our nation for many years to come, and possibly

forever, so this issue will always remain relevant as long as voting is still in place.  

This topic would be difficult to research if I already knew a lot about it, but I only know

very little, so a lot of information is still left for me to find out. Information I still need to gather

is on the aspects of the brains of sixteen-year olds. One of the initial concerns I had was I would

not be able to find a lot of research that was not opinion based. This concern was invalidated
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when I realized I can research other aspects aside from the physical act of voting, such as

behavioral functions and maturity levels. Information regarding the brain is usually based on

science and fact, rather than opinion. These pieces of information, especially if they are backed

by science and factual data, could help determine whether or not sixteen-year olds are ready to

vote. Although I wish I could vote, I do not believe I want some other sixteen-year olds voting.

Based on the sixteen-year olds I am around, I do not know if most sixteen-year olds would take

voting seriously. The maturity levels of sixteen-year olds is something I will heavily focus on in

my research. Another piece of information I still need to gather is the amount of sixteen-

year olds who are familiar with politics. In the history classes I have taken, I have been

familiarized with the political system of the United States, but I cannot assume this is true for all

high schools. I also wish to find out the number of sixteen-year olds who want the right to vote.

And, if only a small number of sixteen-year olds want to vote, would lowering the voting age

still be worthwhile? Some thirty, forty, and fifty-year olds do not even want to vote, but would

exposing people to voting at a younger age encourage them to vote more often? More

information I also need to find is the effects of a larger voting pool. Would the outcomes of

elections be severely different or affected? The historical context of a younger voting age will

also be important in my research. I need to find if any other countries or areas have

allowed sixteen-year olds to vote and what the outcome was, as well as why they wanted to

lower the voting age. All this researchable information will help me determine whether or

not sixteen-year olds should be allowed to vote.  

Most questions regarding politics are debatable. People take many different stances on

political issues and have clashing opinions with others. On one side, people could argue sixteen-

year olds are affected by the choices made by the government, so they should have a say. On the
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other side, people could say sixteen-year olds are not ready or mature enough to vote yet. People

could also say sixteen-year olds perform some of the everyday functions of adults, such as

working and driving, so they should be mature enough to vote. Another argument people could

make is that some sixteen-year olds are mature, but others are not, and allowing those immature

people to vote could be too risky. This argument could still be counteracted by saying

some eighteen-year olds are also not mature, so what is the difference? Researchers also take

different stances on this issue. Depending on how people interpret the act of voting, they can

have different opinions. If voting requires impulse control and split-second decision making in

an emotional situation, then researches at Cornell University argue sixteen-year olds are not

ready to vote. But, if voting requires dispassionate reasoning rather than impulse control, The

Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement believes sixteen-

year olds are ready to vote.  

Anything regarding voting is highly relevant and sustainable. Voting is very prevalent in

the United States and may always remain in place. With the upcoming presidential election,

people are urging everyone who can to vote. The country has never been more divided in their

political opinions, and the voting turnout will be extremely important in the election. With the

current political issues of global warming, immigration, economy, abortion, covid-19, and many

more, voting is an extremely current significant issue. This topic is also highly engaging to me

because it affects me personally.  I feel as though I am mature enough and ready to vote, but I am

unsure about some of my peers. I am also very interested in the brain functions of people my age.

Also, I genuinely want to know the answer to my question. In past research topics I have written

about, I simply completed the assignments because I had to, but I am genuinely curious to see

what information I can learn throughout the assignments.  

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Something I will have to focus on in my paper is rhetoric. Ethos, logos, and pathos will

be crucial in making and proving my point. Ethos establishes my credibility as a writer. My own

credibility is important because people need to feel as though they can trust and believe

what I say. To establish credibility, I will include several sources of credible

and factual information. Logos is logical reasoning. I will need to use logos to logically develop

and back up my point. I will establish logos by looking at all the information I put in the paper,

and then drawing a logical conclusion from that information. I will also need to make sure I do

not have any logical fallacies. Pathos is an appeal to emotion. Pathos will help me engage the

readers and prove to them my topic is worthy of their attention. I will include pathos in my paper

by providing reasons why the topic of voting is such an important issue and why it affects them.  

Topics surrounding politics are constantly in discussion right now in the United States.

One of the topics being discussed is the possibility of lowering the voting age to sixteen. Tons of

research can be done around this topic, including information regarding the brains of sixteen-

year olds. People can take many different stances on this issue because the maturity levels

of sixteen-year olds can be interpreted in several ways. People can also interpret the act of voting

in different ways. Is voting a split-second emotional decision or dispassionate reasoning? With

the importance people are placing on voting today, this issue is extremely relevant. This issue is

also a highly sustainable one, as voting will most likely be around for a long time, and I am

affected personally by the situation. With the topic of voting age being researchable, debatable,

and sustainable, this issue will be a great one to explore and write about this semester.