AMENDMENT 26

Amendment XXVI

SECTION 1.
The right of citizens of the United States, who are 18 years of age or older, to vote, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of age.
SECTION 2.
The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXVI

• Gives anyone who is 18 and a U.S. Citizen the right to vote
• Lowered the voting age
• Congress controls the age

WHEN THE AMENDMENT CAME TO BE

• World War II - Vietnam
• Brought to Court in 1970
• Congress had the right to regulate the age
• March 1971
• 1972

WHY THE AMENDMENT CAME TO BE

• The drafting age
• Movement was nationwide
• Prevent confusion

1970 Oregon v. Mitchell

• Lowering the voting age
• Literacy tests
• Diaqualification due to residency

1970 Oregon v. Mitchell

• New voting age was upheld
• New age was not valid for local and state election
• Literacy test is valid
• Provisions are valid on absentee and residency ballots