1. Voting and Suffrage

2. The United States has expanded its electorate through the elimination of restrictions on voting qualifications Big Idea

3. 15th Amendment 24th Amendment 26th Amendment 19th Amendment

5. The Right To Vote Framers left the decision of who has the right to vote in the hands of the states in the constitution suffrage was given to white, property (stuff) holding men this counted for less than 1 in 15 So What does Suffrage Mean

6. Almost all citizens 18 and older have the right to vote Electorate potential voting population At this point the federal government has placed more restrictions on who the states can allow to vote Suffrage Today ●That’s right I said “Almost all citizens” ○Often people convicted of a crime lose their right to vote ○Also people considered mentally ill don’t have the vote ●What do you think?

7. States vary widely on when they restore voting rights after a conviction Maine and Vermont do not disenfranchise people with convictions: even prisoners may vote People with felony convictions in Florida, Iowa, Kentucky and Virginia are disenfranchised for life, unless they are granted clemency The rest of teh country falls somewhere in between Convicted of a Crime

8. There have been a number of laws and amendments to expand suffrage over the years You need to be able to tell me about these on a Quiz Voting Legislation

9. 15th Amendment ●Person cannot be denied the vote due to race or color 19th Amendment ●A person cannot be denied the vote due to gender 24th Amendment ●Elimited Poll Tax ●Made it so someone’s ability to vote didn’t depend on their ability to pay 26th Amendment ●Sets the minimum age limit to vote as 18

10. Constitutionality As previously stated the true power to set suffrage qualifications is reserved to the states however the amendments put constitutional restrictions on these laws

11. Recently there have been a number of states who have tried to restrict voting rights in order to make sure voter fraud is not occurring According to ACLU (American Civil Liberty Union) Over 30 states considered laws that would require voters to present government-issued photo ID in order to vote 3 additional states passed laws to require documntary proof of citizenship in order to register to vote 2 state legislatures voted to repeal Election Day registartion laws 2 states passed legislation making it much more difficult for 3-party organizations to register voters Current Events