This year marks the 50th anniversary of the passage of the 26th Amendment, which lowered the voting age to 18. This week’s episode tells the fascinating story of the amendment—sparked by two wars and the idea of “old enough to fight, old enough to vote,” principally designed by two senators, and advocated for by countless young people, students, and civil rights activists. Host Jeffrey Rosen was joined by Jason “Jay” Berman, a longtime advisor to one of the principal architects of the 26th Amendment, U.S. Senator Birch Bayh, and Yael Bromberg, author of the article “Youth Voting Rights and the Unfulfilled Promise of the Twenty-Sixth Amendment.”
Special thanks to the 26th Amendment Collection, Modern Political Papers, Indiana University Libraries as well as the Youth Franchise Coalition and Project Vote 18 for the Birch Bayh audio at the top of the episode.
FULL PODCAST
This episode was produced by Jackie McDermott and engineered by David Stotz. Research was provided by Alexandra "Mac" Taylor, Amy Lu, Olivia Gross, and Lana Ulrich.
TRANSCRIPT
This transcript may not be in its final form, accuracy may vary, and it may be updated or revised in the future.
PARTICIPANTS
Yael Bromberg is principal of Bromberg Law LLC. She previously taught and supervised litigation in Georgetown University Law Center’s Civil Rights Clinic and Voting Rights Institute. She is the author of “Youth Voting Rights and the Unfulfilled Promise of the Twenty-Sixth Amendment,” which was recently published in the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law.
Jason Berman spent over a decade as a close advisor to U.S. Senator Birch Bayh, one of the principal architects of the 26th Amendment. He later served in the Clinton White House and held numerous positions in the private sector.
Jeffrey Rosen is the president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization devoted to educating the public about the U.S. Constitution. Rosen is also professor of law at The George Washington University Law School and a contributing editor of The Atlantic.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Stay Connected and Learn More
Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected].
Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr.
Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly.
Please subscribe to We the People and Live at the National Constitution Center on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.
