TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Two DPP legislators joined youth groups and a legal expert at the legislature on Wednesday to call for the voting age to be lowered to 18.

Legislators Fan Yun (范雲) and Wi Pei-yi (吳沛憶) called on the education ministry to reduce the voting age from 20 in a draft version of a “Basic Youth Law” awaiting legislative debate, per RTI. The education ministry published a draft version of the law at the end of March, which would be the first in Taiwan to focus specifically on youth policy — if passed.

Fan said reducing the voting age to 18 would improve young people’s position in society by giving them influence in public affairs. She said a 2022 referendum on reducing the voting age to 18 was not passed because the threshold was too high. She added the legislature has the opportunity to remedy this.

Around 600,000 more people voted for the change in 2022 than against. However, the voter turnout was lower than constitutionally required to implement it.

Better Together for NextGen Taiwan Vice President Lin Ssu-kai (林思愷) said 18-year-olds could be given the right to vote via constitutional amendment or by the legislature. He said the Constitution serves as a “bottom line” for rights protection, and the legislature can pass laws exceeding what the document provides.

National Chengchi University Associate Law Professor Lin Chia-ho (林佳和) said legislators can expand citizens’ basic rights without violating the constitution. He said he has no concerns about giving youth the right to vote via the youth law, adding that it would improve Taiwan’s democracy.

The DPP and KMT have proposed versions of the youth law, and both said their versions focus on protecting young people’s rights, per PTS. However, neither parties' caucuses have said if they support changing the voting age in the proposed youth law.