CL – Some 17-year-olds get early start on voting

Some 17-year-olds get early start on voting

Burks Rives doesn’t turn 18 until September, but he gets to vote in his first election on Aug. 2

A little-known state law allows 17-year-olds, who turn the legal voting age of 18 on or before the date of the general election, to cast a ballot in the primary election. This year’s general election is Nov. 8.

Six days before he starts his senior year at Northwest Rankin High and about a month before his Sept. 9 birthday, Rives said he will be voting to make sure he has a say in the big issues facing his generation.

“Everyone should have a voice, even younger people. I want my voice to be heard,” the Brandon resident said.

Clarion Ledger
6/19/11