Once Republicans championed opening the franchise to 18 year-olds. Today, it seems the party is unwilling to win those votes and would prefer to restrict them.
A historian of the 26th Amendment offers a lesson plan for using newspapers as primary sources to teach how young Americans succeeded in lowering the voting age to 18.
The 26th Amendment resulted from Congress's determination to act swiftly in response to a Supreme Court decision that made it impracticable to grant 18 year olds the right to vote by simple legislation. Youth vote activists, Congress, and democracy advocates should demand similar focus on protecting voting access this year.
