Ever since Geraldine Ferraro for the Democratic Party in the 1984, and Sarah Palin for the Republican Party in the 2008 became Vice Presidential nominees’ women have been making their presence known in the upper echelons of American politics.

Hillary Clinton was the nominee for president in 2016 making her the first woman to represent a major political party for that position.

2020 The Year Of The Woman In Politics

My Saturday Co-Host on Open for Business, Shane Montalban pointed out that the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was passed by Congress June 4, 1919, and ratified by the states on August 18, 1920, the 19th amendment granted women the right to vote.

August 18, 2020 will be the 100^th anniversary of the passage of the 19^th Amendment and be celebrated just two months before the next presidential election.

Hard to believe it took 144 years from the signing of the Declaration of Independence to give women independence in the voting booth.

Black citizens didn’t have it so good either.

Through the use of poll taxes, literacy tests, and other means, Southern states were able to effectively disenfranchise Black Americans.

It would take the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 before the majority of  qualified blacks in the South would have unrestricted rights to register and to vote.

Women’s Suffrage Finally Passes

Suffrage had come before congress many times before but it was either tabled or never made it to the floor of Congress for a vote.

Democrat President Woodrow Wilson cared nothing about suffrage but with a Republican controlled congress suffrage advocates eventually had the votes to pass the 19^th amendment.

Republicans in Congress were overwhelmingly in favor of it. The vote count in the Senate was 36 Republicans and 20 Democrats in favor, and 8 Republicans and 17 Democrats against.

Wilson could have vetoed the bill but decided to send it to the states and let them make the final decision which they did.

Some Final Thoughts

Two very important questions emerge as we move toward the 2020 election. Will women once again step up and seek the nomination for president?

Several Democrat women have been suggested. Oprah Winfrey, Elizabeth Warren, and Michelle Obama are all being encouraged to take the plunge.

The second question — Will women turn out in massive numbers to support their sisters in arms?

One more reason to be happy there’s an Electoral College so that specific groups of people can’t mobilize and alter the wishes of the individual states.

Have you got a woman you think would make a great president? Comments below.