Wyoming's Constitution: A World First For Equality

what did wyoming constitution do first in the world

Wyoming's Constitution was the first in the world to explicitly give women the right to vote. The constitution was drafted, debated and passed entirely by men in 1889, and was approved by a statewide vote of 6,272 to 1,923 on November 5, 1889. However, Wyoming's territorial legislature had already granted women the right to vote in 1869, making it the first government in the world to do so.

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First constitution to give women the right to vote Wyoming Constitution
First government to grant women equal political rights Wyoming territorial legislature

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Wyoming was the first government in the world to grant women the right to vote

The future state prided itself on being the first government to grant women equal political rights. However, it is worth noting that the constitution was drafted, debated and passed entirely by men.

Wyoming's pioneering move towards women's suffrage had a significant impact. Less than three months after the signing of the act, on 17 February 1870, Ester Hobart Morris of South Pass City became the first woman ever to be appointed a justice of the peace, earning her the title of "Mother of Women Suffrage in Wyoming". Laramie was also the site for the first equal suffrage vote cast in the nation by a woman, Mrs Louisa Swain, on 6 September 1870.

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The Wyoming Constitution was the first in the United States to explicitly give women the right to vote

The Wyoming Constitution was drafted, debated, and passed entirely by men. Forty-nine of the 55 elected members assembled in Cheyenne in September 1889 to draft the Constitution. The constitution was approved by a statewide vote of 6,272 to 1,923 on November 5, 1889, and it was the first constitution in the United States to explicitly give women the right to vote. It is worth noting that an earlier New Jersey constitution gave women who owned property the right to vote due to an ambiguity in its text.

The fight for women's suffrage in Wyoming was led by its residents, who successfully secured the right for women to vote and hold political office. This made Wyoming the first official government in the world to grant women's suffrage. The first woman ever to be appointed a justice of the peace was Esther Hobart Morris of South Pass City, who became known as the "Mother of Women Suffrage in Wyoming". Laramie was also the site of the first equal suffrage vote cast in the nation by a woman, Mrs Louisa Swain, on September 6, 1870.

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The Wyoming Constitution was drafted, debated and passed entirely by men

The Wyoming Constitution was the first in the United States to explicitly give women the right to vote. However, the constitution was drafted, debated and passed entirely by men. Forty-nine of the 55 elected members assembled in Cheyenne in September 1889 to draft the Constitution. Four of the 49 did not sign the Constitution and attended only occasionally. Of those who did attend, 31 were Republicans and 18 were Democrats. The Wyoming Constitution was approved by a statewide vote of 6,272 to 1,923 on November 5, 1889. It was the first government in the world to grant women's suffrage.

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The Wyoming Constitution was approved by a statewide vote of 6,272 to 1,923 on November 5, 1889

The constitution was drafted, debated and passed entirely by men. Forty-nine of the 55 elected members assembled in Cheyenne in September 1889 to draft the document. Four of the 49 did not sign the Constitution and attended only occasionally. Of those who did attend, 31 were Republicans and 18 were Democrats. The Wyoming state legislature approved the constitution with minor changes in 1896. It was last amended in 2024.

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The Wyoming Constitution was last amended in 2024

The Wyoming Constitution was the first in the United States to explicitly give women the right to vote. However, an earlier New Jersey constitution gave women who owned property the right to vote because of an ambiguity in its text. Wyoming's territorial legislature became the first government in the world to grant "female suffrage" by enacting a bill granting Wyoming women the right to vote in 1869. The act was signed into law on December 10 of that year by Governor A.J. Campbell.

The Wyoming Constitution was also the first state constitution to grant women the vote. The future state had prided itself on being the first government to grant women equal political rights. The constitution was drafted, debated and passed entirely by men. Of the 49 elected members who assembled in Cheyenne in September 1889 to draft the Constitution, 31 were Republicans and 18 were Democrats.

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