The Women's Legislative Network of NCSL is excited to announce our celebration of the ratification of the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, known as the Suffrage Amendment State History (SASH) Campaign!
Fun fact: The first women to serve in a state legislature were Clara Cressingham, Carrie Holly and Frances Klock, all from Colorado. They were elected in 1894, the year after Colorado passed legislation allowing women to vote but a full 26 years before women could vote nationally.
Bookmark this page for lots of interesting #NCSLsash facts and information about suffragists from your state. NCSL's goal for this campaign is to make sure each state's history is represented and celebrated in recognition of this historic occasion.
We want to hear from you! Please contact us to share your state's story and the women who helped shape it. We are here to help: We can create press packets, gather information about the first women elected in your state or district and use our social media to share information about celebrations and events in your state. This is YOUR history: Please tell us what you'd like to see!
June 4, 2019 marked the 100-year anniversary of the U.S. Senate passing the 19th Amendment, which guaranteed that the right to vote shall not be denied on the basis of sex. The constitutional amendment was then sent to the states to be ratified, 36 of whom needed to ratify for it to become enshrined in the constitution. It would take until August 1920 for the amendment to be fully ratified, but much of the struggle began over 150 years earlier. In July 1848, a convention was called to discuss “the social, civil, and religious condition of woman” in the small village of Seneca Falls, N.Y. This convention attracted national attention and, along with the Declaration of Sentiments released after the meeting, is seen as the launching point of the national women’s suffrage movement in the United States.
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