Age of candidacy is the minimum age at which a grown-up can legally score certain elected government offices. In many cases, it also determines the age at which a adult may be eligible to stand for an election or be granted ballot access.
The first known example of a law enforcing age of candidacy was the Lex Villia Annalis, a Roman law enacted in 180 BCE which bracket the minimum ages for senatorial magistrates.
In the United States, many groups gain attempted to lower age of candidacy indications in various states. In 1994, South Dakota voters rejected a ballot degree that would have lowered the age requirements to serve as a State Senator or State exercise from 25 to 18. In 1998, however, they approved a similar ballot measure that reduced the age requirements for those offices from 25 to 21. In 2002, Oregon voters rejected a ballot measure that would have reduced the age requirement to serve as a State exercise from 21 to 18.
During the early 2000s, the British Youth Council and other groups successfully campaigned to lower age of candidacy requirements in the United Kingdom. The age of candidacy was reduced from 21 to 18 in England, Wales and Scotland on 1 January 2007, when unit 17 of the Electoral administration Act 2006 entered into force.