Minnesota Ratifies the 19th Amendment, September 8, 1919

Women in Minnesota began to organize for suffrage in the 1870s and could vote in school board elections starting in 1875. Fourteen women founded the Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association in 1881 and quickly grew in numbers into the 1890s. The MWSA gained enough support by 1893 that the state Senate considered and approved a resolution to remove the word “male” from the state’s voting requirements. However, the change did not pass the House before its session ended and the motion failed. Despite the setback, the women’s suffrage movement continued to grow in the 1910s and in 1919 Governor J. A. A. Burnquist supported a resolution to support the federal suffrage amendment being considered in the U.S. Congress. While the federal amendment was in debate Minnesota granted women the right to vote in presidential elections in January 1919. Just a few months later Congress passed the 19^th Amendment and Minnesota voted to ratify on September 8, 1919.

Cameron, Linda A. "Ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in Minnesota." MNopedia. Minnesota Historical Society. August 24, 2020. Accessed June 29, 2021. https://www.mnopedia.org/event/ratification-nineteenth-amendment-minnesota.

"Minnesota and the 19th Amendment." National Park Service. October 2, 2019. Accessed June 29, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/articles/minnesota-and-the-19th-amendment.htm.

Weber, Eric W. "Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association." MNopedia. Minnesota Historical Society. August 27, 2020. Accessed June 29, 2021. https://www.mnopedia.org/group/minnesota-woman-suffrage-association.