Student petition wins AFC recommendation to pursue home‑rule petition for 16‑ and 17‑year‑old local voting

A group of Westborough high‑school students asked the Advisory Finance Committee on Monday to support Warrant Article 34, a citizen petition authorizing the Select Board to submit a home‑rule petition that would allow 16‑ and 17‑year‑olds to vote in town elections, town meetings and town caucuses only.

Chloe Flynn, Ghart Doring, Olivia Stark and Ava Wallace said the change would apply only to municipal votes and would not alter eligibility to run for office. “We would like to lower the voting age in Westbrook for 16 and 17 year olds for town elections,” the students said, noting that any change would require state approval and that eligible young people would still have to meet residency and other voter‑registration requirements.

The students pointed to international examples and academic studies to argue that earlier participation builds civic habits and that civic knowledge among many 16‑year‑olds can be comparable with older first‑time voters. They also told the committee they expect modest increases in registration locally — estimating at most roughly 1,200 additional registered voters in an optimistic scenario — and described plans for school‑based outreach and surveys to collect further data on how youth would vote on budgetary items.

During a lengthy question-and-answer session, AFC members asked about administrative costs (additional scanners, ballots and registration logistics) and whether youth turnout would skew results on cost‑increasing articles. The students said they had not yet spoken to the town manager or town clerk about specific election costs but planned to reach out for confirmation, and said they were coordinating with Vote16 organizations and student groups in other Massachusetts towns.

After discussion the committee moved and seconded a recommendation that the town vote in favor of Article 34, describing the presentation as thorough and well‑researched. Committee members recorded a unanimous recommendation in favor of the petition. The AFC’s recommendation does not itself change law; if the town votes to support the home‑rule petition, the Select Board would submit it to the state legislature for consideration.

The matter will next appear on the Town Meeting warrant; students and committee members said they would continue outreach and try to assemble data on how youth voting has affected municipal outcomes in peer towns.