Local means the municipal level.
Local elections concern representative bodies close to home, such as the municipal council and county council. In Sachsen-Anhalt, the minimum voting age is 16. General adulthood at 18 is therefore not automatically the answer to every voting-age question.
Under section 21, municipal citizens are residents with German or another EU nationality who are at least 16 and have lived in the municipality for at least three months. Where someone has several homes, the main residence counts. Section 23 regulates voting rights and exclusion by judicial decision.
The other three answers
The age threshold depends on the election and the type of participation.
14
14 is too young to vote in these local elections. Other forms of political participation are a separate question.
18
18 applies to the Landtag election in Sachsen-Anhalt and generally to standing for a local representative body. The minimum age simply to vote locally is 16.
20
20 is not an additional waiting threshold. Someone meeting the conditions at 16 does not have to wait another four years.
Voting and standing for election are different rights.
Active voting rights mean casting a ballot. Passive electoral rights mean being eligible for election yourself. Section 40 specifies a minimum age of 18 for election to a local representative body.
The answer 16 applies to this particular state and election type. For an actual upcoming election, also check your electoral authority’s information and your entry on the electoral register. A study question does not replace that check.
Sections 21 and 23 · Municipal Constitution Act of Sachsen-Anhalt ↗Locally in Sachsen-Anhalt: vote from 16.
Check Landtag voting and your own candidacy separately.
Three words for this question
- das aktive Wahlrechtright to vote
- The right to cast a ballot in an election.
- das passive Wahlrechteligibility to stand
- The right to be eligible for election.
- die Hauptwohnungmain residence
- With several homes, the residence relevant to this municipal classification.