19th Amendment Certified for Women's Suffrage

Context

The campaign for women’s suffrage stretched across generations and took many forms. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, advocates organized petitions, lectures, marches, and occasional acts of civil disobedience. An amendment granting women the vote was first introduced in Congress in 1878, though progress remained slow as supporters debated whether to pursue state-by-state victories or a federal change.

What Happened

By 1916 the major suffrage groups had coalesced around a constitutional amendment. New York’s adoption of woman suffrage in 1917 and President Woodrow Wilson’s endorsement the following year strengthened the cause. Congress approved the amendment in June 1919 and sent it to the states.

Aftermath

Tennessee’s narrow ratification on August 18, 1920, supplied the required thirty-sixth state. Official documents reached Washington early on August 26. At eight o’clock that morning, Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby signed the proclamation of certification at his residence in the presence of only his secretary.

Legacy

The new amendment instantly enlarged the electorate and set a precedent for later expansions of voting rights. Full participation for all women, however, remained incomplete for decades as discriminatory state laws continued to disenfranchise many African American and other minority voters.