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 states and the federal government.

The following definitions are used in the table below:

Universal Male Suffrage: Men of the majority or predominant 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.

Universal Female Suffrage: Women are permitted to vote on the same basis as men.

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.

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
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Idaho

See Also

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