Young people should at least be given the right to cast their vote in the 2029 municipal elections. That is the central demand of a new initiative spearheaded by two former Youth Parliament presidents, Lana Despotovic and Sam Elsey.
There are 39 signatures in all, with nearly half of the country's mayors now officially behind the initiative. Sam Elsey, a law student and member of the Young Democrats, calls it historic.
Never before, he said, had so many mayors officially taken a joint stand on a single issue.
The list consists of liberal, socialist, and Green mayors. The initiative's main aim, Elsey explained, was to break the taboo established in 2015.
The Luxembourg government held a non-binding constitutional referendum in 2015. Voters were asked three questions: whether the voting age should be reduced to 16; whether the right to vote should be extended to foreigners; and whether term limits should be introduced.
In Elsey's eyes, the referendum served more as a way to gauge the temperature of voters, whether people agreed with the coalition government at the time rather than a vote on the specific issues up for debate.
As the referendum treated many major topics at the same time, Elsey believes it may have scared voters off too.
Elsey argues that granting 16- and 17-year-olds the right, but not the obligation, to vote in municipal elections for the first time would lower the barrier to participation.
The student acknowledges the concerns of sceptics who believe that 16-year-olds are not yet mature enough to shoulder the responsibilities of a voter.
Yet it was a fact, he said, that Luxembourg was far ahead of other countries where voting is a right or, as in Belgium, a mandatory duty. By international standards, he argued, the country's civic education is exemplary.
Looking abroad, one could also see what happens when young people are not taken seriously or not trusted with responsibility as they move into adulthood.
That, Elsey said, in his view, is why they take to the streets, why they cause destruction and why they turn to populists.
The declaration, signed by the 39 mayors, has been submitted to the Chamber of Deputies, to the political parties and to the association of municipalities, among others.
The two former Youth Parliament presidents hope to kick off a fresh debate and see 16- and 17-year-old citizens casting their votes in municipal elections for the first time, as soon as 2029.
