Universal suffrage
Revision as of 16:58, 25 December 2019 by Robert Brockway (talk | contribs)
The table below (currently incomplete) lists the year that universal male and universal female suffrage were introduced in to various jurisdictions. In general nations that became independent during the 20th or 21st centuries granted universal suffrage to men and women at the same time. In nations that became independent during the 19th century men often led women by a few years or decades in obtaining suffrage. What is notable though is that the length of time between universal male and universal female suffrage is tiny compared to the period of time that humans have historically lived in non-democratic states.
| Jurisdiction | Universal Male Suffrage | Universal Female Suffrage | Difference (years) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 1901 | 1902 | 1 | During the 1901 (inaugural) federal election women were eligible to vote if they were eligible to vote in their home state elections. As a result women in South Australia and Western Australia voted in the 1901 election. |
| Australia, New South Wales | 1858 | 1902 | 44 | |
| Australia, Queensland | 1872 | 1905 | 33 | |
| Australia, South Australia | 1855 | 1895 | 40 | |
| Australia, Tasmania | 1896 | 1903 | 7 | |
| Australia, Victoria | 1857 | 1908 | 51 | |
| Australia, Western Australia | 1893 | 1899 | 6 | |
| Belgium | 1918 | 1948 | 30 | |
| Canada | 1920 | 1920 | 0 | Chinese and aborigines were initially excluded regardless of gender. |
| Canada, Alberta | 1916 | |||
| Canada, Manitoba | 1916 | |||
| Canada, Newfoundland | 1925 | 1925 | 0 | Newfoundland did not become part of Canada until 1949. |
| Canada, Ontario | ||||
| Canada, Quebec | 1940 | |||
| Canada, Saskatchewan | 1916 | |||
| Chile | 1970 | 1970 | 0 | |
| Finland | 1906 | 1906 | 0 | |
| Greece | 1830 | 1952 | 122 | |
| Israel | 1948 | 1948 | 0 | |
| Jamaica | 1944 | 1944 | 0 | The House of Representatives was established in 1944. Jamaica then gained increasing autonomy and finally became fully independent in 1962. |
| New Zealand | 1879 | 1893 | 14 | |
| Sweden | 1848 | 1919 | 71 | Military officers were unable to vote until 1945. |
| Switzerland | 1971 | Switzerland is a federal state made up of Cantons. At a Canton level universal female suffrage was achieved at different times. | ||
| United Kingdom | 1918 | 1928 | 10 | Women 30 or older gained the franchise in 1918 if they lived in a house, had a husband who did or owned property worth a certain amount. |