Society & rights
The statement in the quiz
The voting age for Bundestag elections should be lowered to 16.
Background
At present people must be 18 to vote in federal elections. The voting age for European Parliament elections dropped to 16 in 2024, and in some states it is already 16 for local and state elections.
Sources for the background: LTO: Electoral reform commission (25 September 2025)
ForLeaning forNeutral / mixedLeaning againstAgainstNot in manifesto
The manifesto does not mention it; in January 2025 Friedrich Merz said there are good reasons why the rights of adulthood begin at 18.
From the manifesto „Es gibt gute Gründe, warum die Geschäftsfähigkeit eines jungen Menschen mit 18 beginnt und nicht bereits mit 16.“Source: Bundestag youth website mitmischen.de: Interviews with the lead candidates (14 January 2025)
Opposes lowering the voting age below 18.
From the manifesto „Ebenso die Absenkung des Wahlalters unter 18 Jahre.“Source: AfD manifesto for the 2025 federal election, PDF page 135
Wants young people to have a say from the age of 16.
From the manifesto „Ab 16 Jahren sollen junge Menschen mitentscheiden können, deswegen senken wir das aktive Wahlalter.“Source: SPD manifesto for the 2025 federal election, PDF page 27
Wants federal elections to follow the European Parliament and let 16-year-olds vote.
From the manifesto „dass junge Menschen ab 16 Jahren auch bei Bundestagswahlen mitentscheiden dürfen“Source: Greens manifesto for the 2025 federal election, PDF page 85
Wants a voting age of 16 in elections at every level.
From the manifesto „Die Linke setzt sich für eine Absenkung des Wahlalters auf 16 Jahre in allen demokratischen Entscheidungsprozessen“Source: Die Linke manifesto for the 2025 federal election, PDF page 48
The manifesto does not mention it; in January 2025 Sahra Wagenknecht said a lower voting age would leave disadvantaged families with even less influence.
From the manifesto „würde eine Absenkung des Wahlalters dazu beitragen, dass weniger Privilegierte noch weniger Einfluss auf die Politik haben“Source: Bundestag youth website mitmischen.de: Interviews with the lead candidates (14 January 2025)
The manifesto does not mention it; in January 2025 Christian Lindner said he would welcome lowering the voting age to 16.
From the manifesto „Ich würde eine Absenkung des Wahlalters auf 16 Jahre in Deutschland begrüßen.“Source: Bundestag youth website mitmischen.de: Interviews with the lead candidates (14 January 2025)
Positions are coded on five steps: for, leaning for, neutral or mixed, leaning against, against. A party whose manifesto says nothing on the statement is marked “not in manifesto”, and the quiz leaves the statement out of that party’s score. The coding method and its checks are on the method page.
This is one of the statements in the German Party Spectrum Quiz. The whole quiz takes about five minutes and shows how your views split across the seven parties, plus your place on an economic and social map. No sign-up, and we never ask who you are.
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Manifesto coding and background checked: 27 September 2026 Update log