By: Associazione Nazionale Famiglie Numerose
It is one of the topics discussed during the Anfn members’ meeting, hosted at the Club Esse hotel in Montesilvano (Italy): the children’s vote of confidence. Matteo Rizzolli , married, father of five children, university professor, teacher of politics, administration and innovation at the Lumsa University in Rome, spoke about it in a video message.
“A central problem in modern democracies concerns the aging of the electorate and the resulting imbalance of public policies in favor of older generations,” observes Matteo Rizzolli. “Public spending is in fact mainly committed to expenditure items such as pensions and health care that mostly concern the older generation and less to expenditure items such as education and family policies that concern young people and families. This imbalance is further aggravated by the fact that young people are less inclined to vote and therefore to directly influence the policies that concern them. A prime example is the result of the Brexit referendum, where, if young people had voted en masse, the outcome would probably have been different.”
What to do?
«To rebalance the democratic decision-making process and finally make it attentive to the needs of young and future generations, several proposals have been put forward. Among these is the vote of confidence, also known as delegated vote or Demeny vote.Child trustee voting is a proposal that aims to include children in the decision-making process by allowing their parents to vote on their behalf. It is easy to see how this system would allow for much more meaningful political representation of the interests of the younger generations, balancing the political influence of the older voters who currently dominate elections.
The idea of the fiduciary vote was revived by demographer Paul Demeny in the 1980s, but it has even older roots. Antonio Rosmini, in 1848, in the context of his proposed constitution, advanced a similar vision: the father of the family, responsible for the well-being of all members (including his wife), should also represent them in the political sphere. A very advanced idea for the time, since at that time the electorate was limited to men selected by wealth.
In the current context, the confidence vote has recently been mentioned in the American election campaign: Republican vice-presidential candidate JD Vance has expressed support for this measure, as a strategy to combat the declining birth rate and encourage more family-friendly policies».
The vote of confidence for children is also a question of justice…
«Thinking of the children’s vote of confidence only as a measure to rebalance public spending is reductive. It also represents a fundamental issue of human rights. In fact, children are the only category of citizens who remain politically excluded, without the possibility of exercising their right to representation. Throughout history, excluded groups such as the poor, women, ethnic minorities and people with disabilities have been progressively emancipated through the acquisition of the right to vote.
However, minors are still deprived of this fundamental right, despite already having significant responsibilities and rights in other areas, such as health and family. The recognition of the vote of confidence would therefore be a form of political emancipation for a population that, although not yet having full decision-making autonomy, is directly affected by political choices and deserves adequate protection and representation. In this sense, the vote of confidence is not only a tool to improve generational equity, but also a step towards the full recognition of the civil rights of the youngest, allowing them to finally be considered full members of the political community».
A complementary alternative: lowering the voting age…
«True. In addition to the vote of confidence, there is a parallel movement that promotes the lowering of the minimum voting age currently set at 18. Several countries have allowed sixteen-year-olds to vote in the recent European elections. But why 16 and not an even lower threshold? Several scholars and activists argue for the need to lower the minimum age much further and some parents have decided to take action by giving their vote to their children: this was discussed in the spring in Avvenire and just these days the Guardian has given space to a similar global initiative.
One of the most common objections to lowering the voting age or to the vote of confidence concerns the alleged cognitive deficiencies of minors. It is often argued that young people do not yet have the maturity necessary to make informed and rational decisions. However, several studies and practical cases call this assertion into question. In many countries, young people already enjoy significant rights and responsibilities. For example, they can marry, become parents, make important medical decisions, and in some countries, be prosecuted as young as 14. And at the same time, no one questions the right to vote of adults who have serious and understandable cognitive limitations. So why discriminate only against young people on the basis of an unspecified threshold of maturity?
Is it possible to combine children’s vote of confidence with lowering the voting age?
«Children’s vote of confidence and the lowering of the voting age are not two alternative measures, but on the contrary they can easily go together: in fact, we could have an inclusive and dynamic solution to guarantee full political representation of the young generations. The vote of confidence would allow parents to represent their children until they reach an age sufficient to vote independently. And what would this age be? Why not let the children decide when they feel ready, by making a specific request to take over the vote of confidence exercised until then by their parents (of course, it should automatically pass to young people who have come of age). In this way, we would avoid the total exclusion of children from the democratic process during their childhood, while ensuring that, upon reaching the age of individual political maturity, they can exercise their vote in person.
This combination creates a continuum of participation: from an initial phase in which the rights of minors are protected through their parents, to a gradual transition towards political autonomy thanks to the lowering of the voting age. Combining these two proposals promotes not only the political inclusion of families, but also the gradual education and empowerment of young people, who will enter democratic life already aware and prepared, thus strengthening the entire democratic structure”.
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