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US Citizens Voting History

By Milly L
  • Ratification of the 15th Amendment

    Ratification of the 15th Amendment
    The 15th Amendment stated that a citizen's right to vote can't be based on race. This granted African American men the right to vote, however the Amendment would not be enforced until 1965 with the Voting Rights Act.
    National Archives
  • Ratification of the 19th Amendment

    Ratification of the 19th Amendment
    The passage and ratification of the 19th Amendment granted women the right to vote. This amendment was the result of hundreds of women's rights organizations, and decades of protesting.
    National Archives
  • Alice Paul-Equal Rights Amendment

    Alice Paul-Equal Rights Amendment
    Alice Paul wrote the Equal Rights Amendment which she shared in a women's rights assembly at Seneca Falls. Her Amendment would later be ratified as the 19th Amendment.
    History
  • Indian Citizenship Act

    Indian Citizenship Act
    On this date, Congress enacted the Indian Citizenship Act. It granted citizenship to Native Americans(born in the U.S.), however many states still discriminated against Natives, some even barring them from voting until decades later.
    Library of Congress
  • National Voter Registration Act of 1933

    National Voter Registration Act of 1933
    On this date President Bill Clinton signed the NVRA into law. This act set voting requirements and helped voting registration become more accessible. It is nicknamed the "Motor Voter" as it allows citizens to register to vote at their state's DMV.
    Rock the Vote
  • Ratification of the 24th Amendment

    Ratification of the 24th Amendment
    This amendment outlawed poll taxes(set by state or national governments) during Federal elections. It enforced the 15th amendment, which had often been diminished by "obstacles" created by white southerners and directed toward African-American voters.
    The Reagan Library Education Blog
  • Freedom Summer

    Freedom Summer
    On this date, the first group of volunteers for the Freedom Summer project began training at Western College for Women in Oxford, Ohio. The Freedom Summer was an effort to fight voter discrimination and intimidation, and increase African American voter turnout in Mississippi.
    Stanford University
  • Voting Rights Act of 1965

    Voting Rights Act of 1965
    On this date President Lyndon Johnson signed this Act. It enforced the 15th Amendment, and outlawed discriminatory practices set by many states in the south to prevent African Americans from voting(such as literacy tests).
    National Archives
  • Ratification of the 26th Amendment

    Ratification of the 26th Amendment
    This amendment lowered the voting age to 18. The passage and ratification of this amendment followed the Vietnam War, as citizens argued that many of the soldiers forced to go to war couldn't even vote("old enough to fight, old enough to vote").
    THE WHITE HOUSE
  • MOVE Act

    MOVE Act
    The Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act protects service-members voting rights. It sets requirements that states must follow in order for service members stationed overseas to be able to vote.
    Ballotpedia