In Belgium, it was proposed to lower the voting age to 16 in local elections

The proposal submitted to the regional council by the socialist party Vooruit in the Flemish region is scheduled to be discussed in the coming weeks. In the proposal, it is foreseen that young people aged 16 and over will not be required to vote as adults.

It is aimed that the decision on the proposal will be made before summer, thus preparing accordingly for the local elections to be held in October 2024.

The right-wing N-VA party opposes the proposal made by the Socialists, supported by the ruling Christian Democrats (CD&V) and Liberals (Open VLD) in Flemish.

The voting age for the European Parliament elections in Belgium was lowered to 16 last year. 16-year-olds will also be able to vote in the 2024 election for the European Parliament.