WOMEN AND THE VOTE

On this date in 1920 the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, ending the disenfranchisement of women.  The amendment was proposed on June 4, 1919, and over the course of fourteen months the required 36 of the then-48 states ratified the amendment into the law of the land.  No longer could women be barred from voting based on their gender.

I'm proud to say that my home state of Montana took less than two months to ratify, making it the 13th state to do so.  Not too surprising ~ prior to 1920, nearly all the states which already accorded full sufferage to women (the green states in the map above ~ see the color key in the Wikipedia entry) were in the West.  One of the foremost people in Montana history was Jeanette Rankin, was the first woman to serve in the U.S. Congress.  True to her pacifist beliefs, she was the only member of either house to vote against U.S. entry into both World War I and World War II.

Here's to women voters ~ you've made a difference in many important elections, and you'll be a vital factor in the 2012 Presidential and Congressional elections.  In the present case, your interests are the nation's interests, a view clearly not shared by the Romney/Ryan ticket.