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Suffrage is the civil right to vote, or the exercise of that right. In that context it is also called political franchise or simply the franchise, a term dating from the time when the Franks of ancient France were free. Civil rights or positive rights are those legal rights retained by citizens and protected by the government. ...
The Elections and Parties Series Democracy Representative democracy History of democracy Referenda Liberal democracy Representation Voting Voting systems Ideology Elections Elections by country Elections by calender Electoral systems Politics Politics by country Political campaigns Political science Political philosophy Related topics Political parties Parties by country Parties by name Parties by...
Historically, many groups have been excluded from the right to vote, on various grounds or simply because their members were 'subjects' of feudal kings & princes and not 'free' men. Sometimes this exclusion was an explicit policy, clearly stated in the electoral laws; at other times it was implemented in practice by provisions that may seem to have little to do with the exclusion actually being implemented (e.g. poll taxes and literacy requirements used to keep African-Americans in the pre- Civil Rights Era American South from voting). In other cases a group has been permitted to vote, but the electoral system or institutions of government were purposely designed to give them less influence than other more favored groups (see District of Columbia voting rights.) A poll tax, head tax, or capitation is a tax of a uniform, fixed amount per individual (as opposed to a percentage of income). ...
African Americans, also known as Afro-Americans or black Americans, are an ethnic group in the United States of America whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Sub-Saharan and West Africa. ...
The civil rights movement in the United States has been a long, primarily nonviolent struggle to bring full civil rights and equality under the law to all citizens of United States. ...
The U.S. Southern states or The South, known during the American Civil War era as Dixie, is a distinctive region of the United States with its own unique historical perspective, customs, musical styles, and cuisine. ...
Many democracy activists argue for District of Columbia voting rights—i. ...
The legitimacy of democratic government is usually considered to derive primarily from suffrage. FUCK MY BIG ASSHOLE MUTHA FUCKA ...
Types of suffrage
Universal suffrage is a counterintuitive term that does not actually apply to all citizens or residents of a region, but the extension of voting privileges is given without distinction to race, sex, belief, or social status. Distinctions are frequently made in regards to age, and occasionally mental capacity or conviction record. Universal suffrage (also general suffrage or common suffrage) consists of the extension of suffrage, or the right to vote, to all adults, without distinction as to race, sex, belief or social status. ...
The word citizen may refer to: A person with a citizenship Citizen Watch Co. ...
This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
Women's suffrage was the goal of suffragists (commonly referred to as "Suffragettes"), who led a major Liberal and Democratic movement of the early 20th century, protesting vigorously for many years demanding equality with men and the right to vote. Prominent suffragists include Susan B. Anthony, Emmeline Pankhurst, Kate Sheppard and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The international movement for womens suffrage, led by suffragists (commonly called suffragettes), was a social, economic and political reform movement aimed at extending the suffrage (that is, the right to vote) to women, advocating equal suffrage (abolition of graded votes) rather than universal suffrage (abolition of discrimination due to...
Suffragette with banner, Washington DC, 1918 The title of suffragette was given to members of the womens suffrage movement in the United Kingdom and United States, particularly in the years prior to World War I. The name was the Womens Social and Political Union (founded in 1903). ...
In politics, the term liberal refers to: an adherent of the ideology of liberalism —an ideology espousing liberty. ...
Democracy is a form of government under which the power to alter the laws and structures of government lies, ultimately, with the citizenry. ...
(19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the...
The Elections and Parties Series Democracy Representative democracy History of democracy Referenda Liberal democracy Representation Voting Voting systems Ideology Elections Elections by country Elections by calender Electoral systems Politics Politics by country Political campaigns Political science Political philosophy Related topics Political parties Parties by country Parties by name Parties by...
Susan Brownell Anthony, aged 28 Susan Brownell Anthony Susan Brownell Anthony, (February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906) was an American civil rights leader who, along with Elizabeth Cady Stanton, led the effort to grant women the right to vote in the United States. ...
Emmeline Pankhurst Emmeline Pankhurst (July 14, 1858 - June 14, 1928) was one of the founders of the British suffragette movement. ...
Katherine Wilson Sheppard (10 March 1847 – 13 July 1934) was the most prominent member of New Zealands womens suffrage movement, and is the countrys most famous suffragette. ...
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and her daughter Harriot. ...
Manhood suffrage —males right to vote.
Equal suffrage is a term sometimes confused with Universal suffrage, although its meaning is the removal of graded votes, where a voter could possess a number of votes in accordance with income, wealth or social status.
Census suffrage is the opposite of Equal suffrage: the suffrage is limited, usually to the propertied classes, but can still be universal, i.e. including for instance women or blacks granted they meet the census.
Compulsory suffrage is a system where those who are elegible to vote are required by law to do so. Australia is an example of a country practising this form of suffrage. Compulsory voting is a practice that requires citizens to vote in elections. ...
Forms of exclusion from suffrage
Race or ethnicity See the article on universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also general suffrage or common suffrage) consists of the extension of suffrage, or the right to vote, to all adults, without distinction as to race, sex, belief or social status. ...
Gender See women's suffrage The international movement for womens suffrage, led by suffragists (commonly called suffragettes), was a social, economic and political reform movement aimed at extending the suffrage (that is, the right to vote) to women, advocating equal suffrage (abolition of graded votes) rather than universal suffrage (abolition of discrimination due to...
Social class Up until the 19th century, many Western democracies had property qualifications in their electoral laws, that meant that only people with a certain degree of wealth could vote. Today these laws have largely been abolished. However in some countries this still applies in practice (although perhaps unintentionally) even though not in law; most democratic countries require an address for the electors to be qualified to vote. In practice, this excludes all those who have not achieved enough wealth as to have the means to own or rent living quarters, such as the homeless. Many also discriminate on the basis of criminal or psychiatric record (see below) which are very strongly correlated with class. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Homelessness is a situation in which a person does not have a permanent place of residence. ...
Age Despite the boast of universal suffrage, all modern democracies require voters to meet age qualifications to vote and deny the right to vote to individuals below the voting age. Often overlooked, young people under the voting age make up 20-50% of the population in some countries, and have no political representation. Worldwide voting ages are not consistent, fluctuating between countries and indeed within countries, usually between 15 and 21. Following movements to enfranchise women, minorities and the poor, a world wide youth suffrage movement is now brewing. An integral part of the wider youth rights movement, youth suffrage proponents seek to lower or abolish the voting age. Universal suffrage (also general suffrage or common suffrage) consists of the extension of suffrage, or the right to vote, to all adults, without distinction as to race, sex, belief or social status. ...
The voting age is the minimum legal age at which a person may vote in a governmental election. ...
Youth rights refers to a set of philosophies intended to enhance civil rights for young people. ...
In all democratic countries, young people are excluded from voting in local and national elections, though the voting age is set at different ages ranging from 15 to 21. The option of qualifying by 'rite of passage' tests to certify a person's competence to vote responsibly is yet to be widely debated. One analogy is with the 'right' to drive is obvious, where few advocate that people of any age should be free to drive motor vehicles on public roads without first demonstrating practical skills and theoretical knowledge.
There have been proposals to lower the national voting age to 16 in the United Kingdom.
Prisoners and other excluded groups Many countries have disenfranchisement of sentenced prisoners, in the USA voting privileges are denied to prisoners by some states, however several others (Canada and most of the countries of the European Union) allow prisoners to vote, regardless of time served, nature of the crime, etc. Some countries (and U.S. states) also deny the right to vote to those convicted of serious crimes, even after they are released from prison. In some cases (e.g. the felony disfranchisement laws found in many U.S. states) the denial of the right to vote is automatic on conviction of a serious criminal offence; in other cases (e.g. provisions found in many parts of continental Europe) the denial of the right to vote is an additional penalty that the court can choose to impose, over and above the penalty of imprisonment, such as in France or Germany. Another exemption from the right to vote is made by some countries for people in psychiatric facilities. In the United Kingdom, peers who are members of the House of Lords (all up until reforms in 1999) are also excluded from voting in general elections. A U.S. state is any one of the 50 states (four of which officially favor the term commonwealth) which, together with the District of Columbia, form the United States of America. ...
Continental Europe refers to the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands and peninsulae. ...
The Peerage is a system of titles of nobility which exists in the United Kingdom and is one part of the British honours system. ...
This article is about the British House of Lords. ...
Suffrage today Today, in most democracies, the right to vote is granted as a birth right, without discrimination with regard to race, ethnicity, class or gender. Without any qualifying test (such as literacy), citizens or subjects above the voting age in a country can normally vote in its elections. Resident aliens can vote in local elections in some countries and in others exceptions are made for citizens of countries with which they have close links (e.g. some members of the Commonwealth, and the members of the European Union). Aliens are foreigners to their surroundings. ...
Flag of the Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of independent sovereign states, most of which were once governed by the United Kingdom and are its former colonies. ...
It may be surprising that in the US citizens technically lack a constitutional right to vote. This bit of information is misleading however until one understands that under the United States' federal system, individual states administer most issues relating to voting procedure. Several amendments to the federal constitution, however, specifically prohibit states from denying the vote for certain reasons, such as the 15th amendment which says "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." Other amendments prohibit states from denying the vote on account of sex or age (for those over age 18).
Interestingly a few groups have attempted to change this system, such as the National Voting Rights Institute, ReclaimDemocracy.org and the Center for Voting and Democracy. In 2003, U.S. Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-IL) introduced House Resolution 28 to seek congressional support for a Constitutional Amendment that would address the issue. See also District of Columbia voting rights. ReclaimDemocracy. ...
The Center for Voting and Democracy is a non-profit organization based in Takoma Park, Maryland which provides information to the public about the impact of voting systems on political representation, proportional representation, and voter turnout. ...
Jesse Jackson, Jr. ...
Many democracy activists argue for District of Columbia voting rights—i. ...
See also Politics is the process and method of gaining or maintaining support for public or common action: the conduct of decision-making for groups. ...
Meanings of franchise: Full rights of citizenship given by a country or a town, especially suffrage (political franchise) In a wider sense: any right or privilege granted by constitution or statute. ...
In politics, an electorate is the group of entities entitled to vote in an election. ...
External links - ReclaimDemocracy.org - Establishing a Much Needed Constitutional Right to Vote
- Voting, Elections, Democracy, Republicanism, and the Electoral College Discusses voting, elections, democracy, republicanism, and the Electoral College. Includes a procedural guide to the electoral college, parts of the Constitution and constitutional amendments regarding voting and elections, and includes the original paper by Alexander Hamilton, "Federalist No. 68 - The Mode of Electing the President", which illustrates much of the founding fathers' original thinking regarding the Electoral College.
- FairVote - Center for Voting and Democracy Right to Vote Initiative resources page, highlighting information pertaining to the right to vote and the U.S. Constitution
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