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History of Voting Rights
More Election Resources: Voting - Election Process - Kids Vote
During colonial times, the right to vote was limited to adult white males who owned property. Most women could not vote, though some colonies gave the vote to widows who owned property. After the United States became an independent nation, the Constitution gave the states the right to decide who could vote. One by one, the states abolished property requirements and, by 1830, all white male adults could vote.
Since the 1800's, democratic nations have extended suffrage (the right to vote) to many people. The Constitution of the United States has been amended several times for this purpose.
- The 15th Amendment was adopted in 1870, five years after the American Civil War ended. It prohibited the states from denying a citizen the right to vote because of race.
- Women were not allowed to vote in most states until the ratification of the19th Amendment in 1920.
- The 23rd Amendment, ratified in 1961, gave citizens living in Washington, D.C., the right to vote in national elections.
- In 1971, the 26th Amendment lowered the voting age to 18 for all state and national elections. Before then, only 10 states had allowed citizens under age 21 to vote.
African American History Resources
- The African American Odyssey: A Quest for Full Citizenship - The story of African Americans from the end of slavery through the Civil Rights era. It includes documents, maps, films and recordings.
- The First Vote - A portrayal of the first black man to vote
- African American History Challenge - An interactive quiz about African American history
Woman Suffrage Resources
- Woman Suffrage and the 19th Amendment - Primary sources, activities, and web sites for educators and students
- Votes for Women - Library of Congress' collection includes 167 books, pamphlets and other artifacts documenting the National American Woman Suffrage Association's campaign for women's right to vote.
- "Votes for Women" Suffrage - Pictures from 1850 to 1920
- Women and the Vote - Alice Paul’s fight for suffrage
Illustrations by David Chen © 1997. All rights reserved Utah Education Network.