Voting Age for Primary Elections

Elections

17-Year-Olds and Primary Elections

Although the federal voting age is 18, a third of the states allow those who are 17, but will be 18 by the general election, to vote in primaries. Although the federal voting age is 18, 18 states and Washington, D.C., allow those who are 17, but will be 18 by the general election, to vote in primaries.

Some states may allow 17-year-olds to vote in presidential primaries or caucuses as well. These states are not included on this webpage.

For information on states that permit 16- and 17-year-olds to register to vote, see Preregistration for Young Voters.

States That Allow Voting for People Younger Than 18
STATE	STATUTE	ENACTED
Connecticut	Article XXXI, Articles of Amendment to the Constitution	2008
Delaware	Del. Code Ann. tit. 15, §1701, 3110	2010
District of Columbia	D.C. Code Ann. §1-1001.07	2009
Illinois	Ill. Rev. Stat. §5/3-6	2013
Indiana	Ind. Code §3-7-13-1	1995
Iowa	IA Code § 48A.5	2017
Kentucky	Ky. Rev. Stat. §116.055	2010
Maine	Me. Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 21, §111-A	2004
Maryland	Md. Ann. Code art. 3, §102(a)(2)	2010
Mississippi	Miss. Code Ann. §23-15-11	1997
Nebraska	Neb. Rev. Stat. §32-110	1994
New Mexico	N.M. Stat. Ann. §1-4-2	2016
North Carolina	N.C. Gen. Stat. §163A-843	2016
Ohio	Ohio Rev. Code Ann. §3503.011	1981
South Carolina	S.C. Code Ann. §7-5-180	1997
Utah	Utah Code Ann. §20A-2-101	2018
Vermont	Const. Ch. II, §42	2010
Virginia	Va. Code §24.2-403	2004
West Virginia	W. Va. Code §3-2-2	2013

NCSL on
Preregistration for Young Voters
Preregistration allows individuals younger than 18 years of age to register to vote.

NCSL on
State Primary Election Types
https://www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/state-primary-election-types

Related Resources

Updated June 06, 2023

Voter Registration List Maintenance

This page contains information about the steps states take to keep their voter registration rolls accurate and up-to-date.

Elections

Table

Updated May 26, 2023

State Primary Election Types

The manner in which party primary elections are conducted varies widely from state to state. Primaries can be categorized as either closed, partially closed, partially open, open to unaffiliated voters, open or top-two.

Elections

Graphic

Table

Updated May 24, 2023

Lawmakers, Your Local Election Officials Would Like to Chat

A new guide from NCSL and the Election Assistance Commission can help the officials who implement election policy connect with the people who make it.

Elections

State Legislatures News

Contact NCSL
For more information on this topic, use this form to reach NCSL staff.
Email
Full Name
What is your role?
Message
Captcha
Admin Email

Summary Voting Age for Primary Elections

17-Year-Olds and Primary Elections

Related Resources

Voter Registration List Maintenance

State Primary Election Types

Lawmakers, Your Local Election Officials Would Like to Chat

Contact NCSL

Contact Us

Denver

Washington, D.C.