Kid Rep: Should Colorado Pass Amendment V?

5 Comments

by: Colorado Pols

One of the baker’s dozen of statewide ballot questions Coloradans will be voting on this election is Amendment V, a statutory referred measure that would change the minimum age of eligibility to serve in the Colorado General Assembly from the current 25 to 21 years of age. Colorado Public Radio:

Proponents say restricting 21- to 24-year-olds from serving in the legislature is an unnecessary restriction. Allowing younger candidates to run for office encourages civic engagement, they say. Opponents say younger candidates may not have the maturity and expertise to be effective legislators.

What say you, Polsters? A poll follows on whether you think this would be a good idea. Our general view is that if you’re old enough to vote, join the Army, drink, and smoke weed legally, you should be allowed to willingly subject yourself to the rigors of campaigning for a year and a half to land a two-year contract for a $30,000-a-year job.

But your mileage may vary.

5 thoughts on “Kid Rep: Should Colorado Pass Amendment V?”

Mike W. says:

October 15, 2018 at 2:55 pm

Keep it at 25. There's at best a dozen ~~kids~~ young adults in the state who want to get elected at that age, and frankly they can wait four years and build up some work experience in the meantime.

This isn't a law that needs to be changed.

Log in to Reply
RepealAndReplace says:

October 15, 2018 at 3:25 pm

Lower it to 21. It's not like the maturity level can drop any lower.

Log in to Reply
1. mamajama55 says:
  
  October 15, 2018 at 4:56 pm
  
  What R&R said. There are 21 to 25 year olds who are capable of extraordinary leadership and wisdom. I'm thinking of my nephews and nieces, who have been studying data analytics, legislative policy, filmmaking, and community organizing (respectively). They have become used to high level analysis, interacting with people, long hours, living on little money and no sleep, being immersed in challenging programs intended to make the world better. They've completed challenging internship programs in the real world.
  
  What better training for the legislature could there be? It's more than HD15 has ever given us. HD15 sent up Dr. Chaps – a religious huckster selling hate and fear and making millions from it – now we have David Williams – same formula, but without the bogus christianity. We have Ray Scott.
  
  We have Vicki Marble, Randy Baumgartner, Steve Lebsock, the Neville clan, any number of lawmakers over 30 who don't have the intellectual or moral fortitude of these Gen Z (born 1995 +) young people.
  
  Let the young'uns serve. They're the ones who will have to spend a lifetime in a world of drowned coastlines, ecological catastrophes and refugee crises that our policies have created. They may as well have a voice in steering that world.
  
  Log in to Reply
JohnInDenver says:

October 15, 2018 at 5:03 pm

With some of the fine public servants in the news recently, I think we ought to allow the younger people to serve if they can get elected …

I think they would be exposed to mandatory ethics classes, keep them off the streets during the legislative session, and otherwise diminish their opportunity to make choices which would doom their future.

Log in to Reply
OrangeFree says:

October 15, 2018 at 5:09 pm

If you're old enough to drink, you're old enough to make laws.

Log in to Reply