TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Along with the municipal elections held on Saturday (Nov. 26), a referendum proposed by the Executive Yuan's cabinet to amend the Constitution to lower the voting age was also held. The referendum, which would have lowered the age from 20 to 18, ultimately failed to pass the necessary threshold.

According to the Central Election Commission's (CEC) vote count, at the time of publication, the vote on "yes" amounted to 5.63 million while the vote on "no" amounted to 5 million. Despite the lead, it was certain to fall short of the required 9.62 million votes required for a constitutional amendment by referendum, as over 99.9% of the polling stations had already submitted their vote tallies to the CEC.

It's widely believed that the high threshold to pass referendums makes any proposed amendments highly unlikely to pass.

The civic group pushing for the amendment to lower the voting age, the Taiwan Alliance For Advancement of Youth Rights and Welfare, said on Saturday that the group is considering filing for a constitutional interpretation with the Constitutional Court. They may seek another referendum in the future, said a spokesperson.

Critics of the measure claim that those below the age of 20 are too young and immature, and cannot be trusted with a ballot. Proponents of the measure, like former chairman of AmCham Taichung, Courtney Donovan Smith, argue that young people aged 18 and 19 should be given the civic right to vote, since they are legally entrusted with the right to drive trucks, use firearms to defend the country, and to parent children and start families.