Universal suffrage in the United States

As its name suggests the United States is a federal state. On joining federation the states ceded certain powers to the federal government but retained other powers for themselves. As a result, suffrage was granted at different times by different states and the federal government.

The following definitions are used in the table below:

Universal Male Suffrage: Men of the majority ethnic group are permitted one secret vote in free elections irrespective of possession of land, wealth, education levels or literacy levels where the minimum age is no higher than 21.

This differs from the definition used in the English Wikipedia as it considers universal male suffrage to begin when men of the majority ethnic group of any age received the franchise without further qualification. The English Wikipedia definition would mean that in reality only a minority of men would have the franchise and makes it appear that universal male suffrage was enacted earlier than it really was.

Universal Female Suffrage: Women of the majority ethnic group are permitted one secret vote in free elections irrespective of possession of land, wealth, education levels or literacy levels where the minimum age is no higher than 21.

It is universally accepted within psephology that some citizens may be deprived of suffrage while a jurisdiction can still be considered to have Universal Suffrage. Examples of citizens so deprived include military officers, citizens who are non-resident, citizens serving a term of imprisonment and citizens with serious criminal records.

If minority ethnic suffrage was counted as a requirement for universal male and female suffrage then the dates of universal suffrage would be much later for many nations. This would unfortunately obscure important information pertaining to universal suffrage and gender - that in general there was little or no delay between universal male and universal female suffrage of the majority ethnic group in most nations. The exclusion of minority ethnic suffrage in this manner is also consistent with the norms of psephology when considering universal male and universal female suffrage.

Jurisdiction	Universal Male Suffrage	Universal Female Suffrage	Difference (years)	Notes
United States	1870	1920	50	Information in Wikipedia differs from that presented here due to a different definition for Universal Male Suffrage.
Alabama	1893	1920	27
Arizona	1891	1912	21
Arkansas	1891	1917	26
California	1891	1911	20
Colorado	1891	1893	2
Connecticut	1909	1920	11
Delaware	1891	1920	29
Florida	1895	1920	25
Georgia	1922	1922	0
Idaho	1891	1896	5
Illinois	1891	1913	22
Indiana	1889	1919	30
Iowa	1892	1919	27
Kansas	1893	1912	19
Kentucky	1882	1920	38
Louisiana	1896	1920	24
Maine	1891	1919	28
Maryland	1892	1920	28
Massachusetts	1888	1920	32
Michigan	1891	1918	27
Minnesota	1891	1919	28
Mississippi	1890	1920	30
Missouri	1891	1919	28
Montana	1889	1914	25
Nebraska	1891	1917	26
Nevada	1891	1914	23
New Hampshire	1891	1920	29
New Jersey	1911	1920	9
New Mexico	1912	1920	8
New York	1895	1917	22
North Carolina	1929	1929	0	Later than federal elections due to the late introduction of the secret ballot.
North Dakota	1891	1917	26
Ohio	1891	1919	28
Oklahoma	1890	1918	28
Oregon	1891	1912	21
Pennsylvania	1891	1920	29
Rhode Island	1889	1917	28
South Carolina	1950	1950	0	Later than federal elections due to the late introduction of the secret ballot.
South Dakota	1891	1918	27
Tennessee	1921	1921	0	Later than federal elections due to the late introduction of the secret ballot.
Texas	1905	1918	13
Utah	1896	1896	0	Became a state in 1896.
Vermont	1890	1920	30
Virginia	1894	1920	26
Washington	1890	1910	20
West Virginia	1891	1920	29
Wisconsin	1894	1919	25
Wyoming	1890	1890	0	Became a state in 1890.

See Also

• Suffrage
• Universal suffrage
• Universal suffrage in Australia
• Universal suffrage in Canada

External Links

• Timeline