U-Talk: Should there be an age limit for people seeking elected office?
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- C.J. Mortensen
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- Kyle Kirk
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- Donna Irish
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- James (Jim) Hebert
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- Curtis East
Editor’s note: U-Talk is a weekly feature in which we ask five local residents to tell us their thoughts about a particular issue. Responses may be edited for clarity and length.
“Yeah, I think so. I think on the lower end, it should be at least 25. I know that they are changing age limits for all kinds of things these days, like 16-year-old kids wanting to be able to cast their votes. I have heard that they are trying to push for things like that. Anybody younger than 18 — especially when it comes to political matters and voting for people to serve in offices — I think they still have a little bit of growing up to do. I know I had some more growing up to do at that age. … From personal experience, in my mid-20s, I started to give those things a bit more thought. … I know that in order to run for president, you have to be 35 years old; but for like our city officials, locally, I think positions like city officials, mayors, city council members, for example, I would think 25 years old is a good starting age. Somebody who is 18, in my opinion — just getting out of high school, really — doesn’t know a whole lot about what is going on. They are not wanting to be involved with any life experiences outside of high school and don’t really have a good idea of what’s really going on yet. … Kids now when they are getting out of school, I guess when it comes to being a part of any kind of community, these kids are not really trying to be too involved with any kind of community. That’s when they just don’t want to have those same responsibilities that their grandparents and parents had when they were their age. I mean, I have a lot of friends who are in their early to mid-30s who would rather live in an apartment or condo where there is some sort of (homeowners association) so that they do not have to participate in those responsibilities. They are wanting something that they can move in and out of. … I think it is a generational thing nowadays, rather than settling down and being involved in and help grow their community.” — C.J. Mortensen, Ogden
“I would think so, yes. A lot of young minds are wild. At least 18 years old should be the minimum age. Once you become an adult, you should be able to run for elected positions. A lot of young minds are not fully progressed yet; a lot of young minds make stupid decisions. … If you are senile, yeah, I do agree that there needs to be an age limit for, I guess, for both younger generations and for the older generations as well. It is like driving a car; you have to be a certain age to drive a car and it can get to the point where you are just too old to drive anymore. Once you are too old, they are not going to allow you to continue to be driving your car anymore.” — Kyle Kirk, Washington Terrace
“No. … If you put a number on it, you have so many what-ifs. I am 68 years old and I would never want to run for office. I would no more be capable of being the president than the man on the moon. However, I think that President Biden is doing a great job, and I love me some Dark Brandon. After former President Trump, I’ve been flabbergasted.” — Donna Irish, Ogden
“No, 18, that should be the legal age. Everyone has an opinion, an idea, a thought process and a brain, so when we limit people’s opinions only to a certain age then we are missing out on all the other age ranges. … I think that all 18-year-old U.S. citizens should be able to participate in running for any positions in office they wish, and in other elections that they may want to hold. Like I said, no. I don’t believe there should be restrictions; once we start to limit people, we are only limiting ourselves.” — James (Jim) Hebert, Ogden
“I think that there should be younger people. Like Joe Biden, he, I think, should be a younger president — you know, still older people but not too old. Forty-something is not too old. I mean, give the younger people a chance. I think that it is possible to start presidential elections at the age of 18. I think that younger people should have a chance. As long as they want to, it seems like that would be a great form of experience. If they want to run again, they can run again, until they’re like Joe Biden. He is in his 80s, and I think that that is about old enough.” — Curtis East, Ogden
Photos and interviews by Adam Rubin, Special to the Standard-Examiner.
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