Meath teenager looking forward to finally voting in election after receiving polling cards as a child

A Meath teenager who received four polling cards before the age of 10 is now looking forward to finally voting legally for the first ever time in the forthcoming general election.

Cody Lowe from Trim was sent his own polling cards for both the general elections and local elections when he was five years of age and again when he nine years old.

His mum even brought him to vote in an effort to ensure he didn't get any more cards by mistake.

Now Cody is looking forward to finally being able to vote, after turning 18 last September.

"He kept getting cards when he was six and although I pointed it out to various councillors, the cards just kept coming. I think he got four in total for various elections and a referendum from when he was five," said Cody's mother Ashling

"So on the last one, I got Cody dressed up and brought him to vote with his passport. The lady politely told him he wasn't eligible to vote and ripped up the card there and then. And that was the last we got."

Cody, who is sitting his Leaving Certificate this year remembers going to the polling station but thought he was being sent to school on his day off.

Cody Lowe, now aged 18, looking forward to getting his first legal polling card.

"I remember walking down because I thought I was being sent to school and I remember going into one of my old classrooms in St Michael's NS," he said.

"A woman thought I was holding the card for my mam but when I told her it was mine, she looked as confused as I was," he laughed. "Sure I thought I was an adult and it was my time to shine.

"I really thought it was official. I was one of them grown ups now."

"It's funny because there are a good few letters that come to the house addressed to Mr and Mrs Lowe. They must think me and mam and husband and wife."

I'm looking forward to getting my polling card and being able to vote now. I think I'll be voting for Aontu as they helped my mam out recently when she had nowhere to move her food bank to.

"I think though that a lot of teenagers my age just tick a box when it comes to voting as we live in a little bubble where the most important issues to us centre around relationships and what college we are hoping to go it.

"I think homelessness is a bigger issue to us than climate change. If we can't look after ourselves first, what hope have we got of looking after the planet."