Vote 16 Bill

Honourable senators, today it is my privilege to rise at second reading to support Bill S-222, the vote 16 act.

I’m proud to say that my province, New Brunswick, has been the scene of some of the most ambitious and exciting initiatives to promote this policy. This bill actually brings back memories for me.

I recently came across an editorial written in 2016 by a younger man, coincidentally also named Victor Boudreau. It opened with the following:

Every time we can make our democracy more inclusive, either by giving more people a voice or making it easier to express their voice, we have served our democracy well. Throughout Canada’s history, changes to accomplish this have happened over and over.

At the time I wrote this article, I was a New Brunswick cabinet minister. One of my responsibilities was to oversee considerations on democratic and electoral reform. An independent, non-partisan commission was given a mandate to help create a more effective legislature and to identify ways to improve participation in the democratic process.

The commission sought a broad range of perspectives to ensure that discussions about electoral reform were informed by the insights of New Brunswickers from a diverse range of fields, including academics, stakeholder groups and individuals, as well as provincial, national and international experts.

I will quote from the commission’s report:

The commission have been reminded that young New Brunswickers are becoming increasingly more involved in their communities and in the issues that matter and are of importance to them. Through the public school curriculum, media information and online activities, they are proving themselves to be better prepared for the responsibilities involved in obtaining the right to vote.

Later, it states:

During its meetings, the commission was encouraged by the level of maturity and intelligence displayed by the young New Brunswickers with whom it met.

Further down, the report says:

The commission heard loud and clear the pleas to continue the journey of removing barriers for those who are fighting for their right to vote. The commission believes New Brunswick has an opportunity to be a nationwide leader on this topic. By lowering the voting age to 16, New Brunswick would signal to these individuals that their voices and their opinions matter. The commission believes this is important if New Brunswickers want to encourage greater involvement and participation among youth.

The commission, therefore, formally recommended lowering the voting age to 16 across the province.

Unfortunately, our government lost the election in 2018 before we could move on to the next stages of the reform. However, the extensive work of this commission and the testimony of the young people it heard from are still part of the public record.

As senators consider this bill today, this work serves as a reminder that the arguments in favour of Vote16 have already been carefully examined and already have strong support here in Canada.

Here is another example of the leading role played by young people in my province: The Fédération des jeunes francophones du Nouveau-Brunswick, or the FJFNB, has been advocating for this cause for over 10 years. In March, 32 people signed the FJFNB’s open letter calling on the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick to extend voting rights to 16- and 17-year-olds. The supporters included many student representatives, as well as representatives from three francophone school districts, the Société nationale de l’Acadie, the Regroupement féministe du Nouveau-Brunswick, the Fédération étudiante du Campus universitaire de Moncton, the Association francophone des parents du Nouveau-Brunswick and the Fédération de la jeunesse canadienne-française.

Here is an excerpt from their letter:

Lowering the voting age to 16 presents an opportunity to strengthen our democracy by enabling a new generation of citizens to actively participate in the decisions that shape their future. By the age of 16, young people are already engaged citizens who are active in their communities and directly affected by public policies on education, health, transportation, the environment, employment and many other issues. Many young people are already actively participating in the province’s economy through employment.

Several democracies around the world have already successfully implemented this measure, proving that lowering the voting age promotes long-term civic engagement. It only makes sense that young people should have a say in the issues that affect their daily lives and their collective future.

This letter is a testament to the civic determination of our young people. I think that even those of us who are not yet convinced by this policy can still recognize their passion and commitment.

To respond to an objection that has previously been raised in this chamber, denying young people the right to vote does not actually protect them from the stress, pressure or cynicism of politics. In fact, it only limits their ability to influence political decisions that may affect their lives, including those that have negative consequences. This exclusion can lead to a sense of powerlessness and disconnection that often persists even after they finally gain the right to vote at the age of 18.

Vote16 advocates Erika de Torres and Aleksi Toiviainen, in The Hill Times article entitled “An aging democracy needs youth voices,” published on February 16, 2026, wrote the following regarding this bill:

It would have been easier to understand such objections to this policy 20, or even 10 years ago, when the evidence on young people’s civic maturity was not quite so conclusive. But now, 17 countries have enacted this change in elections for at least one level of government, and the stereotypes no longer hold.

The most comprehensive studies on this matter, conducted in Austria, Belgium and Germany, have found that 16- and 17-year-olds match adults in their ability to evaluate their voting decisions. They’re ready.

Even here in Canada, at least 20 First Nations, Métis and Inuit organizations, as well as the governments of British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island and the Yukon, have election codes or legislation enshrining a minimum voting age of 16. People aged 16 and 17 years of age have been able to vote in official participatory budgeting projects in Dieppe, Montreal, Hamilton, Toronto, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Halifax and Vancouver. Through these projects, young people are able to have visible influence over real public dollars and achieve tangible improvements in their communities that they can point to and take pride in.

In other words, voting at 16 is not a hypothetical reform in Canada; it is a practice already tested and trusted across several jurisdictions and communities.

Young people under the age of 18 are already invited to vote by the Liberal Party, the Conservative Party, the Green Party and the NDP, all of which accept voting members aged 14 and up. If our political parties think that 16-year-olds are capable of choosing their leaders, then these young people should be considered equally capable of voting in our elections. It is not right to deprive a group of citizens of that fundamental right when we know that they are capable of voting.

Policies work better when decision-makers involve those who are most directly affected by the consequences. When young people can’t or don’t vote, it’s easier to ignore their voices, even when it comes to decisions that will shape their future.

If we want strong, stable policies on issues affecting young people, then youth participation must go hand in hand with real accountability in the political process. We need measures that have been proven to increase voter turnout.

Honourable senators, this bill represents a unique opportunity to revitalize our democracy and support our country’s young people. For these reasons, I will be supporting the bill and I encourage you to do the same.

Thank you. Meegwetch.

Thank you very much. You mentioned that members of political parties can vote from the age of 14. Are we talking about federal or provincial political parties?

I’m not sure whether, across all parties, this applies at the provincial or federal level. In the Liberal Party of Canada, young people are allowed to get involved in the party and vote at policy conferences and conventions from the age of 14. I’m fairly certain that the same applies to the other political parties, not only at the provincial level, but also at the federal level.

Thank you for the question. I didn’t mention the Saskatchewan Party in my remarks. I talked about the parties that I was aware of that allowed youth to vote at 14. I, myself, became involved with a political party at the age of 17 and started voting back then.

I find it somewhat interesting, but we’ve been talking about children under 16 all afternoon. We talked about it when we talked about a social media ban, cellphone bans, AI earlier, pornography just before this bill — all under the age of 16. Then, obviously, at 16, that means something happens, and people become more responsible, older and more aware. This is a personal opinion, and we’re all entitled to our personal opinions, but I believe that youth who are 16 and 17 years old have the capacity to be informed, become informed, get involved and vote.

As I said, many political parties allow it at an age as young as 14. This bill refers to 16- and 17-year-olds, and I think it’s time for Canada to lead by example and allow these young adults to have a greater say. We always say that we either don’t hear from them or they say that politicians aren’t listening to them. Politicians aren’t listening to them because they’re not voting.

I’m a former politician, so I can say this: We tend to listen to those who vote, and 16- and 17-year-olds aren’t given that right. If we give them that right to vote, politicians will start listening to them, and decisions will start happening.

Senator Boudreau, your speaking time is up. Would you like more time to answer the question?

Yes.

Is leave granted, honourable senators?

Again, I thank the senator for her question, but I respectfully disagree with her point of view on this.

I understand the point that if — and there’s a big “if” there. This was a resolution passed at the Liberal Party convention. It doesn’t mean it will become law or the government will follow through with it.

However, there are other ways for youth to get involved and form opinions. Again, I started in student politics at the high school level, in Grade 9. That led to partisan politics, community involvement, being active in my community and becoming a member of the Lions Club and later the Rotary Club. There are different ways for youth to get involved and to be able to form an opinion.

I’m repeating myself, but if parties are already allowing 14‑, 15-, 16- and 17-year-olds to get involved and to vote for the leader of the party, who may then go on to become Prime Minister, why not let them vote in the next step of the process?

I firmly believe our youth are ready to take on this responsibility. They want this responsibility. I think it would help engage them more in politics. I think it will force governments to listen to them more as well because they will have a say in upcoming elections.