Internationally-experienced political strategist Dan Centinello considers the requirements that countries across the world place on their elected leaders.

1. AGE RESTRICTIONS &
REQUIREMENTS IN POLITICS
A Global Look.
DAN CENTINELLO

2. HOW OLD DOES A LEADER NEED TO
BE TO HAVE OUR TRUST?
The answer varies across nations; some say the voting age of 18 is old
enough even for a president. Others urge caution, and set the age bar at as
high as forty. Oftentimes, elected offices in regional and local offices also
have determinations for how old a candidate must be before presenting
themselves as a candidate. Differences aside, all nations lay out specific
requirements for their leaders.

3. CANADA
All candidates who seek public office
must be at least 18 to run in an election.
The exception to this is for senators,
who must be at least 30 and own a
minimum of $4,000 worth of land in
their appointed province. Candidates
must additionally possess property or
assets valued at $4,000 more than their
totaled debts and liabilities.
Current President: Justin Trudeau, age 45.
Trudeau is the second-youngest president
in Canada’s history behind Joe Clark, who
was sworn into office on the eve of his 40th
birthday.

4. FRANCE
In France, presidential candidates must
be 18 years old. Interestingly, this is
below the 24 years required of a
senatorial candidate.
Current President: Emmanuel Macron,
age 39. Macron is the youngest president
in France’s history.

5. GERMANY
Candidates for the German presidency
must be at least 40 years old at the time
of their candidacy. All other local,
regional, and national elected positions
require their candidates to be 18 and
over.
Current President: Frank-Walter
Steinmeier, age 61
Current Prime Minister: Angela Merkel,
age 63

6. UNITED STATES
Presidential and vice-presidential
candidates must be at least 35 to run
for office. The requirement stands at 30
for senators, and at 25 for
representatives. On the regional level,
states set their own rules regarding age
specifications for positions such as the
governorship. Usually, though, these
candidates are required to be 18 or 21 in
order to run.
Current President: Donald Trump, age
71

7. UNITED KINGDOM
Excepting Scotland (whose age limit is
set at 16), candidates must be at least 18
years of age to run for all parliamentary,
assembly, and council positions. This
rule applies not only to national-level
UK positions, but also to those at
European, devolved, or local level. The
age for candidacy was 21 until 2006,
when it was officially lowered by the
Electoral Administration Act.
Current Prime Minister: Theresa May, age
61

8. THANK YOU.
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