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The usual threshold of 18 means that young people’s first chance to vote often coincides with finishing compulsory education and leaving home.
投票門檻通常為十八歲，這意味著年輕人第一次擁有投票機會時往往正好完成義務教育并離開家門。
Away from their parents, they have no established voters to emulate and little connection to their new communities.
由于遠離父母，他們投票時不能跟隨老選民，并且他們與新社區之間也沒有多強的紐帶。
As they move around, they may remain off the electoral roll.
隨著他們四處奔波，他們也許會一直都不去投票。
Sixteen-year-olds, by contrast, can easily be added to it and introduced to civic life at home and school.
相反，十六歲的青少年可以很容易地注冊進入投票名單，并在家庭或學校接受公民生活教育。
They can pick up the voting habit by accompanying their parents to polling stations.
通過陪同父母前往投票站，這些小選民可以養成投票習慣。
In Scotland, where 16- and 17-year-olds were eligible to vote in the independence referendum in 2014, an impressive three-quarters of those who registered turned out on the day, compared with 54% of 18- to 24-year-olds.
在蘇格蘭，十六七歲的公民有資格在2014年的獨立公投中投票，在注冊者中有四分之三的人在投票當天完成投票，這個比率令人印象深刻。十八至二十四歲的注冊者投票率為54%。
In 2007 Austria became the only rich country where 16-year-olds could vote in all elections.
在2007年，奧地利成為發達國家中唯一一個十六歲公民可以在所有選舉中投票的國家。
Encouragingly, turnout rates for under-18s are markedly higher than for 19- to 25-year-olds.
令人鼓舞的是，十八歲以下的公民投票率明顯要高于十九至二十五歲的人。
Merely lowering the voting age is not enough, however.
然而，僅僅是降低法定投票年齡是不夠的。
Youth participation in Scotland might have been still higher if more schools had helped register pupils.
如果更多學校幫助注冊未成年選民，蘇格蘭青年參與程度可能還會更高。
Governments also need to work harder at keeping electoral rolls current.
政府還需要努力時時更新選舉名單。
Some are experimenting with automatic updates whenever a citizen notifies a public body of a change of address.
有些人嘗試在公民通知公共機構自己的地址變更時進行信息自動更新。
Civics lessons can be improved.
公民教育課也還有改進空間。
Courses that promote open debate and give pupils a vote in aspects of their school lives are more likely to boost political commitment later in life than those that present dry facts about the mechanics of government.
那些鼓勵公開辯論、鼓勵未成年人就學校生活事宜發起投票的課程，比干巴巴地講解政府機制的課程更有可能促進學生在以后的生活中承擔政治義務。
A lower voting age would strengthen the voice of the young and signal that their opinions matter.
投票年齡的降低將加強年輕人的聲音，并向他們表明他們的觀點是受到重視的。
It is they, after all, who will bear the brunt of climate change and service the debt that paid for benefits, such as pensions and health care, of today’s elderly.
畢竟是年輕人們將忍受氣候變化的沖擊并且償還那些利益所支付的債務，比如老年人的退休金以及醫療保健費用。
Voting at 16 would make it easier to initiate new citizens in civic life.
在16歲的時候參與投票更易于讓這些新公民開啟公民生活。
Above all, it would help guarantee the supply of young voters needed to preserve the vitality of democracy.
最重要的是，這將有助于源源不斷提供年輕選民，他們是保持民主的活力所必需的。
Catch them early, and they will grow into better citizens.
早早開始吸引他們投票，他們就會長成更好的公民。
譯文來源考研英語時事閱讀
