Are People More Inclined to Vote at 16 than at 18? Evidence for the First-Time Voting Boost Among 16- to 25-Year-Olds in Austria
Open accessAbstract
Potential consequences of lowering voting age to 16 have been discussed in recent scientific and public debates. This article examines turnout of young voters aged 16 to 17 in Austria, the first European country that lowered the general voting age to 16. For this purpose we use unique data taken from electoral lists of two recent Austrian regional elections. The results support the idea that the so-called "first-time voting boost" is even stronger among the youngest voters as turnout was (a) higher compared to 18- to 20-year-old first-time voters and (b) not substantially lower than the average turnout rate. We conclude that our findings are encouraging for the idea of lowering voting age as a means to establish higher turnout rates in the future.
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A number of studies have shown that 16- and 17-year-olds have higher rates of turnout as first-time voters, when given the chance to vote, than 18- and 19-year-olds.
“A number of studies have shown that the first part of Franklin's (2004) argument holds water; that 16-and 17-year-olds have higher rates of turnout as first time voters, when given the chance to vote, than 18-and 19-year-olds (Bergh, 2013;Zeglovits and Aichholzer, 2014;Aichholzer and Kritzinger, 2020;Huebner and Eichhorn, 2020;Ødega ˚rd et al., 2020).”
From Lowering the Voting Age to 16 in Practice: Processes and Outcomes Compared (2021) · cites this paper as Zeglovits and Aichholzer, 2014
The Results report higher turnout for 16–17-year-olds than for older first-time voters in both Austrian towns, supporting the claim’s main point. The reported group comparison is with ages 18–20, however, not specifically 18–19; the Results also say that 16- to 18-year-olds in Krems did not differ substantially in turnout. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.82)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredWhen comparing only those voting in their first-ever elections, younger first-time voters have higher chances to turn out than their slightly older peers.
“However, when comparing only those voting in their first-ever elections, younger first-time voters have higher chances to turn out than their slightly older peers (Bhatti and Hansen, 2012; Zeglovits and Aichholzer, 2014).”
From How Young People in Scotland Experience the Right to Vote at 16: Evidence on ‘Votes-at-16’ in Scotland from Qualitative Work with Young People (2021) · cites this paper as Zeglovits and Aichholzer, 2014
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Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
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Cites
Bergh, J. (2013) · Electoral Studies · doi:10.1016/j.electstud.2012.11.001 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 23
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- Zeglovits E. Kritzinger S. 2013 New attempts to reduce overreporting of voter turnout and their effects International Journal of Public Opinion Research 10.1093/ijpor/edt010 · DOI
- Zeglovits E. Zandonella M. 2013 Political interest of adolescents before and after lowering the voting age: the case of Austria Journal of Youth Studies
Cited by
Sorted by citations
First-Time Boost Beats Experience: The Effect of past Eligibility on Turnout
Bhatti, Y., Hansen, K. M., & Wass, H. (2016) · Electoral Studies · doi:10.1016/j.electstud.2015.12.005 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Lowering the Voting Age to 16 in Practice: Processes and Outcomes Compared
Eichhorn, J., & Bergh, J. (2021) · Parliamentary Affairs · doi:10.1093/pa/gsab019 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
“A number of studies have shown that the first part of Franklin’s (2004) argument holds water; that 16- and 17-year-olds have higher rates of turnout as first time voters, when given the chance to vote, than 18- and 19-year-olds (Bergh, 2013; Zeglovits and Aichholzer, 2014; Aichholzer and Kritzinger, 2020; Huebner and…”
BackgroundHuebner, C. (2021) · Parliamentary Affairs · doi:10.1093/pa/gsab017 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
“However, when comparing only those voting in their first-ever elections, younger first-time voters have higher chances to turn out than their slightly older peers (Bhatti and Hansen, 2012; Zeglovits and Aichholzer, 2014).”
BackgroundRibeiro, N., Malafaia, C., & Ferreira, T. (2023) · Education, Citizenship and Social Justice · doi:10.1177/17461979221097072 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
“For instance, the study of Zeglovits and Aichholzer (2014), which examined the turnout of young voters aged 16 to 17 in Austria, the first European country to lower the voting age to 16, presents results ‘support[ing] the idea that the so-called “first-time voting boost” is even stronger among the…”
BackgroundResultInfluentialLonger-Term Effects of Voting at Age 16: Higher Turnout Among Young People in Scotland
Eichhorn, J., & Huebner, C. (2025) · Politics and Governance · doi:10.17645/pag.9283 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
“…newly enfranchised 16‐and 17‐year‐olds can be higher than among slightly older first‐time voters (Electoral Commission, 2014; Faas & Leininger, 2020; Zeglovits & Aichholzer, 2014) and that young people benefit from earlier enfranchisement in terms of political interest, engagement with…”
Influential
- Authors
- Zeglovits, E., & Aichholzer, J.
- Affiliations
- University of Vienna (AT)
- Corresponding author
- Zeglovits, Eva
- ORCID
- Aichholzer, Julian
- Venue
- Journal of Elections, Public Opinion and Parties
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2014-01-08
- Volume
- 24
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 351-361
- ISSN
- 1368-9886 (ISSN-L)
- 1745-7289
- 1745-7297
- PMC
- PMC4864896
- OpenAlex
- W1965731499
- Cited by
- 72
- References
- 1
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 21.71
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- Journal of Elections Public Opinion and Parties (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Figshare (cc-by)
- Funders
- Austrian Science Fund (S-10902-G11)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Electoral Systems and Political Participation
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Youth, Politics, and Society
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Political Theory and Democracy
- Keywords
- voting age, 16-year-olds, youth voter turnout, first-time voters, young voters, voter turnout, Austria, regional elections
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