In Berlin, young people from the age of 16 should be able to have a say in the composition of the House of Representatives.

So far, this is only possible in the elections to the district assembly.

Red-Green-Red and the Berlin FDP want to lower the voting age accordingly this year.

This was announced by SPD parliamentary group leader Raed Saleh and FDP parliamentary group leader Sebastian Czaja on Thursday.

A two-thirds majority in the state parliament is required for the constitutional amendment, which the governing parties SPD, Greens and Left Party alone do not have and therefore need support from the opposition.

The FDP parliamentary group supports the plan to get the reform off the ground quickly, said Czaja.

"We believe that this is also an expression of social progress and a question of generational justice," said the FDP politician.

SPD state and parliamentary group leader Saleh said he was a big supporter of the voting age from 16 for state elections because young people deserve a vote.

This regulation already applies in five other federal states from Hamburg to Baden-Württemberg.

The neighboring state of Brandenburg is also one of them.

"It is high time for Berlin."

"We can pass a law this year that can then be used in the 2026 House of Representatives elections," said Saleh.

"Personally, I believe that many Berliners will take advantage of this at a young age." This is also indicated by the experiences from the federal states in which young people are allowed to vote at 16.

16-year-olds also have a right to participate

From Czaja's point of view, it is realistic to implement the project by the end of the year.

The FDP politician pointed out that the consequences of political decisions also affect younger people who have not yet been allowed to vote: Anyone who considers the current major challenges such as the pandemic or the Ukraine war must ask themselves the question “whom that everything is presented as a burden at once," said Czaja.

"This is exactly this generation."

Greens parliamentary group leader Silke Gebel welcomed the plans: "As Greens, we have always worked to ensure that young people have a strong voice in politics," she told the dpa.

"It is clear that the right to vote must be lowered, because of course 16-year-olds are responsible citizens and have the right to help shape it."

Hendrikje Klein, MP responsible for citizen participation in the Left Group, said she was pleased that the Berlin FDP was now on board.

"Together with the coalition, we can now change the Berlin constitution and thus lower the voting age for the Berlin parliamentary elections from 18 to 16." The project should be implemented quickly.

The youth organizations of the SPD and Greens in Berlin also spoke out in favor of the reform.

Lowering the voting age to 16 means that young people deal with political issues earlier and get involved, said Mary Vom, spokeswoman for the Green Youth Berlin.

The state chairwoman of the Young Socialists (Jusos), Sinem Tasan-Funke, emphasized: "This is an important step for more participation by young people in public life, which we naturally also want to see enforced at federal level."

SPD parliamentary group leader Saleh also sees it this way: "I wish that at the federal level the traffic light coalition would take a similar step for the federal elections, but others have to decide that," he said.

At the state level, he sees the development coming across the board: "It's only right and up-to-date for people to be able to vote at the age of 16.

I am convinced that at some point all other federal states will follow suit.”

Saleh once again campaigned for the support of the Christian Democrats, who have so far rejected lowering the voting age.

“I expressly invite the CDU.

The broader the alliance, the better it is.” A spokesman for the CDU parliamentary group said on Thursday that MPs wanted to discuss the issue at their next meeting.

It is quite conceivable that the Christian Democrats could move on the issue: a good dozen CDU MPs have moved into the state parliament.

In the last electoral term, no two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives was foreseeable for lowering the voting age.

After the elections in September, however, the reform is possible: 98 of the 147 MPs would have to agree to it.

The SPD, the Greens and the Left Party have 92 seats, the FDP has 12 MPs – together that is already 104, even without the CDU.