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Jennings Randolph Introduces Bill
In 1942, Jenning Randolph, and democrat from West Virginia, introdced legislation to lower the voting age. It was the first of 11 times he introduced such a bill in Congress. His faith in America's youth drove him to do this. -
Georgia Lowers Voting Age During WW2.
In World War Two, 18-year-olds were drafted into the military. Many were upset that they could fight, but couldn't vote. "Old enough to fight, old enough to vote," became a common saying. In 1943, Georgia became the first state to lower its voting age from 21 to 18. -
Eisenhower's State of the Union
President Dwight D. Eisenhower voices his support for prohibiting age-based restrictions on voting for those 18 and older in his 1954 state of the union address. He was the first president to publicly voice his opinion on voting restrictions. -
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Vietnam War
During the Vietnam War, voting activists held marches and rallies across the country to draw attention to the issue of voting age restrictions. They were upset that 18-year-olds were dieing in Vietnam, but didn't have the right to vote. -
60 Resolution Introduced to Congress
During the year 1969, about 60 resolutions were brought forth to Congress to lower the legal voting age. However, none of these bills resulted in any action. -
Oregon v. Mitchell
Oregon challenges NIxon's provision to lower the voting age. The court decided that Congress could only regulate voting age in federal elections, not local and state. A law lowering the voting age in state and local elctions would require an amendment. -
Nixon Extends Voting Act of 1965
On this day Preseident Nixon signed an extension of the Voting Act of 1965. It reqiured the voting age to be 18 in all federal, state, and local elections. -
Senate Votes in Favor of Amendment
On this day the senate voted 94-0 in support of the proposed amendment. It guaranteed that the voting age could not be higher than 18. -
House Proposes Amendment
The House of Representatives voted in favor of the amendment 401-19. Five states ratified it that same day. Many states followed suit and ratified it shortly after. -
Amendment Ratified
On July 1, the 38th state ratified the amendment. It was adopted to the constitution four days later. The amentment was ratified within four months of when it was submitted to the states, the shortest time any proposed amendment has received enough votes to be adopted to the constitution.
