Suffrage refers to the right to vote in political elections. It is a fundamental democratic right that allows citizens to participate in the political process by electing representatives and expressing their opinions on important issues. Suffrage can also refer to the historical struggles and movements that sought to expand voting rights to groups that were previously excluded, such as women, people of color, and individuals without property or wealth.
Worldwide, women started fighting for suffrage in the 19th century. A few places allowed women to vote before the early 1800s, but the majority did not. In the United States, some women in New Jersey had the right to vote from 1776-1807. The Kingdom of Hawaii allowed women’s suffrage from 1840 to 1852. The first sovereign nation to grant women voting rights was Norway in 1913.[1]
Although women had been fighting for the right of suffrage worldwide, World War I was the turning point for voting rights. Women played an active role in supporting the war effort through volunteer and paid employment. Some countries included women in their militaries as nurses or in other support roles. The end of the war saw countries acknowledging this work by granting suffrage. These countries included:
- Australia: 1902
- Austria: 1918
- Canada: 1918 (except in Prince Edward Island and Quebec)
- Ireland: 1918 (partial)
- Italy: 1925 (partial)
- Sweden: 1919
- United Kingdom: 1918 (partial)
- United States: 1920
After World War II more countries granted women’s voting rights, including
Women’s suffrage continued to be a right denied to some of the world’s women into the 2000s. It’s important to acknowledge that even when a country granted women’s suffrage, not all women were allowed to vote. In some cases, partial suffrage was granted that only allowed certain women to vote or to vote in only select elections. Native, First Nation, and Aborigine peoples were typically excluded and not granted rights until decades later.
It's important to take women's suffrage into account when researching female ancestors, as they will be absent from voter records until they received the right to vote. See also: voter records
Women’s Suffrage in the United States of America
National women's suffrage was granted in 1920 with the passage of the 19th amendment. In some states, women had suffrage rights before 1920. However, it's essential to research women's suffrage in the state your ancestor lived in to understand what voting rights women had throughout the state's history.
Even in cases where women didn't have full suffrage, they may have voted in local elections decades before the 19th amendment.
Not all women voted after 1920 because they weren't franchised or didn't want to. The 19th amendment didn't grant all women voting rights. From 1907 to 1922, American women who married non-citizens lost their citizenship. This means that they would not have been able to vote in 1920. In addition, Native American women and women in Puerto Rico could not vote until decades later.
In addition, African American women, and others, may have been driven from the polls due to racism and violence during the Jim Crow era. Voting in many places also required payment of a poll tax that may not have been feasible for the poor.
Even after all women had the right to vote, not all chose to. The anti-suffrage movement of the 19th and 20th centuries included women. Not all women believed that women should have the right to vote. Therefore, they may have actively chosen not to vote once they could.
Search census and voter records on MyHeritage
Explore more about researching female ancestors
- The Secret Lives of Women — Researching Female Ancestors Using the Sources They Left Behind, webinar by Gena Philibert-Ortega on Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- 50 Records That Document Female Ancestors, webinar by Gena Philibert-Ortega on Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- Finding Females in U.S. Naturalization Records, webinar by Nancy E. Loe, MA, MLS on Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- ↑ Women’s Suffrage, Wikipedia, accessed 1 March 2023.