Women's Suffrage: A Constitutional Mystery

The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which came into effect on August 18, 1920, prohibits the United States and its states from denying any citizen the right to vote based on sex. This amendment was the culmination of a lengthy and challenging campaign by women's suffrage supporters, which began in the mid-19th century. The movement involved lectures, marches, lobbying, and civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical constitutional change. While the 19th Amendment was a significant milestone, it did not guarantee voting rights for all women, as millions of women of colour across the country continued to face obstacles to voting for several decades.

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The 19th Amendment

The fight for women's suffrage in the U.S. began in the mid-19th century, with early supporters employing various strategies such as lecturing, writing, marching, lobbying, and even civil disobedience to challenge male-only voting laws. Despite facing resistance and sometimes harsh treatment, these pioneers persisted, laying the groundwork for future generations of activists. By the late 19th century, the movement gained momentum, with the formation of state, regional, and local suffrage groups, including those led by Black women who were often excluded from national organizations.

The first women's suffrage amendment was introduced in Congress in 1878 but was rejected in 1887. It wasn't until 1919 that the amendment finally passed in the House of Representatives and the Senate, thanks to shifting political tides and increasing public pressure. The amendment then needed ratification by three-fourths of the states to become part of the Constitution. This was achieved on August 18, 1920, when Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify, with a pivotal vote cast by a state representative, influenced by his mother's plea.

Today, the anniversary of the 19th Amendment's ratification is commemorated as Women's Equality Day, drawing attention to the ongoing journey towards full equality and the legacy of those who fought for women's suffrage.

State-by-state strategy

The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1920, was the culmination of a decades-long movement for women's suffrage at both the state and national levels. The amendment states, "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex."

The road to achieving this amendment was long and challenging, with strategies varying over time. One key strategy employed by suffragists was a state-by-state approach, which involved lobbying and campaigning for women's voting rights in individual states. This strategy was pursued by several organisations, including the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), formed in 1890 through the merger of the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) and the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA).

The state-by-state strategy had some notable successes:

• By 1912, nine western states had adopted woman suffrage legislation.
• In 1917, New York adopted woman suffrage, contributing to the shifting political landscape.
• Between 1869 and 1920, women in Western territories and states made significant strides towards suffrage, with Wyoming and Utah including women's suffrage in their territorial constitutions.
• In 1890, Wyoming continued to grant women the right to vote after achieving statehood, and in 1896, Utah restored women's suffrage upon achieving statehood.
• Unmarried women who owned property in New Jersey were able to vote between 1776 and 1807, and in 1790 and 1797, the state clarified the voting rights of single women with property.

However, it's important to note that these state-level successes did not always translate into long-lasting change. For example, women's suffrage in Utah was revoked in 1887 with the passage of the Edmunds-Tucker Act, and in New Jersey, women were stripped of their voting rights in 1807. Additionally, the state-by-state strategy faced challenges due to apathy among women, requiring suffragists to organise grassroots efforts to build support for their cause.

The state-by-state strategy was an important component of the overall campaign for women's suffrage, but it was not the only approach. Activists also pursued congressional testimony, petitioning, and lobbying at the national level. The passage of the 19th Amendment was ultimately the result of a combination of these efforts, along with the tireless work of generations of activists.

Early women voters

The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which came into effect on 26 August 1920, was a culmination of a long and arduous journey for women's suffrage. The fight for women's voting rights began in the mid-19th century, with several generations of women's suffrage supporters employing various strategies to achieve what many Americans considered a radical constitutional change. While the 19th Amendment was a significant milestone, it was preceded by a complex history of women's voting rights in certain states and under specific conditions.

The earliest recorded instance of a woman voting in America occurred in 1756 in colonial Massachusetts. Despite the exclusionary voting laws that restricted the right to free men who owned property, the town of Uxbridge allowed Lydia Chapin Taft, a wealthy widow, to vote in three town meetings. This exception was likely made because her eldest surviving son was under the voting age. Moving forward to the late 18th century, the state of New Jersey adopted a constitution that included a nondescript "they" in the voter qualifications statute, which some have interpreted as implying that women had the right to vote. However, this interpretation is disputed, and it is argued that the constitution only implied the right, which was later clarified in revisions made in 1790 and 1797. These revisions included the words "he or she," explicitly granting voting rights to unmarried women who owned property. This right was first adopted in seven out of thirteen counties and then expanded across the state. It is important to note that married women were not considered separate legal entities from their husbands and, therefore, did not have the right to vote.

During the late 18th and early 19th centuries, women in New Jersey actively participated in local, state, and federal elections. The poll lists from this period reveal the names of 163 individual women voters, including Grace Little, a wealthy widow and slaveholder. These women often voted together with female family members and friends, possibly for safety in numbers or to protect their interests in a contentious political climate. The presence of free women of color on these poll lists indicates that they, too, were legally entitled to vote if they met the property requirements. However, the names of Black women voters have not yet been identified, and further research is needed to uncover their voting participation.

In the Western territories, women gained the right to vote in 1869, and in the decade leading up to the 19th Amendment, 23 states granted women full or partial voting rights through dedicated campaigns. Notably, the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), formed in 1890, played a crucial role in advocating for women's voting rights on a state-by-state basis. By 1912, nine western states had adopted women's suffrage legislation. The campaign for women's suffrage gained further momentum with the support of President Wilson in 1918, and the amendment was passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate in 1919.

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Women's Suffrage Movement

The women's suffrage movement fought for women's legal right to vote in national and local elections. The struggle for universal suffrage was particularly intense in Great Britain and the United States in the 19th century. However, these countries were not the first to grant women the right to vote. By the early 20th century, several other countries had already granted women the right to vote in national elections, including New Zealand (1893), Australia (1902), Finland (1906), and Norway (1913).

In the US, the women's suffrage movement began in the mid-19th century, with several generations of supporters agitating for change through lectures, writing, marches, lobbying, and civil disobedience. The first women's rights convention was organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott in July 1848. Frederick Douglass, a leader of the abolition movement, also attended this convention and later became an advocate for women's suffrage. In 1869, Stanton and Susan B. Anthony formed the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA), which opposed the 15th Amendment because it excluded women. The NWSA argued for universal suffrage and advocated for a range of reforms to make women equal members of society. In contrast, another group of women supported the 15th Amendment and formed the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA) led by Lucy Stone, Julia Ward Howe, and Thomas Wentworth Higginson. The AWSA focused on gaining access at a local level and pursued a state-by-state strategy.

In Great Britain, the demand for women's suffrage was first advocated by Mary Wollstonecraft in her book "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman" (1792). The Chartist movement of the 1840s and prominent liberal intellectuals in England from the 1850s onwards took up the cause. In 1865, the first woman suffrage committee was formed in Manchester, and in 1867, John Stuart Mill presented a petition with about 1,550 signatures to Parliament demanding the vote for women.

In the 20th century, suffragists in the US began staging large and dramatic parades to draw attention to their cause. One notable demonstration was a march held in Washington, DC, on March 3, 1913, with over 5,000 suffragists from across the country in attendance. During World War I, suffragists tried to pressure President Woodrow Wilson into supporting a federal woman suffrage amendment. Alice Paul, frustrated with the NAWSA's leadership, broke away and formed the National Woman's Party (NWP), employing more militant tactics. The NWP organized the first White House picket in US history on January 10, 1917, with silent sentinels demonstrating for nearly three years.

After years of struggle, the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution was passed on June 4, 1919, and ratified on August 18, 1920, granting women the right to vote. However, this did not ensure full enfranchisement, and it took several more decades for women of color to gain the right to vote in many states.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

The US Constitution does not explicitly forbid women from voting. However, it took a lengthy and difficult struggle for women to gain the right to vote. This victory came about after decades of agitation and protest by women's suffrage supporters, who lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical constitutional change.

The 19th Amendment, ratified in 1920, granted women the right to vote in the US. The road to achieving this milestone was long and challenging. It began in the mid-19th century and took several generations of activism to succeed. Notably, Black women played a significant role in this struggle, founding many state, regional, and local suffrage groups. However, they were often not fully welcomed or recognized in national organizations.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was a landmark federal statute that prohibited racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights movement on August 6, 1965. The Act enforced the voting rights protected by the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, aiming to secure the right to vote for racial minorities, especially in the South. This legislation was a response to the violent resistance and discriminatory voting practices faced by African Americans in the South, which included literacy tests, poll taxes, and other bureaucratic restrictions.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 had an immediate impact, with a significant increase in new Black voter registrations. It was readopted and strengthened in 1970, 1975, and 1982, and Congress amended the Act five times to expand its protections. The Act is considered the most effective federal civil rights legislation in the country's history, significantly changing the relationship between federal and state governments regarding voting rights.

The most recent effort to strengthen voting rights is the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, introduced in Congress in 2019. Despite these advancements, challenges to voting rights persist, including redistricting, poll location changes, and closures, which disproportionately impact Black voters.

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