1877
Jim Crow Laws are
passed to keep African
Americans from voting
1943
Chinese
Exclusion
Repeal Act
Voting Timeline
1868
14
th
Amendment:
Citizenship is granted
to former slaves
1870
15
th
Amendment: Right
to vote cannot be
denied by race
1920
19
th
Amendment:
Right to vote granted
to white women
1876
Supreme Court
denies Native
Americans the right
to vote based on the
14
th
Amendment
1971
Age to vote lowered
from 21 to 18
1776
White men
with land
can vote
1866
Civil Rights Act:
All native-born Americans
are citizens, but do not
have the right to vote
1964
24
th
Amendment: Poll
taxes outlawed
1965
Voting Rights Act:
Outlawed
discriminatory voting
practices adopted by
many southern states
1961
23
rd
Amendment:
DC can vote for
President
2000
Residents in U.S.
colonies are
citizens, but
cannot vote
1952
The Immigration and
Nationality Act and
McCarran-Walter Act
1984
Voting Accessibility
for the Elderly and
Handicapped Act
1993
National Voter
Registration Act
2002
Help America
Vote Act
2013
Shelby County v.
Holder
1863
The Emancipation
Proclamation was
issued and ended
slavery in southern
states
1882
The Chinese Exclusion Act
bars people of Chinese
ancestry from naturalizing to
become U.S. citizens.
1890
Wyoming becomes
the first state to
legislate voting for
women in its
constitution.
1896
Several southern
states pass
"grandfather clauses"
to prevent former
slaves and their
descendants from
voting
1918
World War I advanced
women’s suffrage and
granted U.S. citizenship for
the Native Americans that
served during World War I
1922
The Supreme Court
rules that people of
Japanese heritage
and Asian Indians are
ineligible to become
naturalized citizens.
1924
The Indian Citizenship
Act grants citizenship to
Native Americans, but
states pass various laws
to keep them from voting
1945
World War II served as
a catalyst for the Civil
Rights Movements and
Racial Reform
2019
The Voting Rights
Advancement Act
was introduced
and passed in the
House
1865
13
th
Amendment:
Slavery and
involuntary servitude
is abolished
2006
Indiana becomes
the first state to
pass Voter ID laws
❖ 1776- White men with land can vote
America declares independence from the England and creates a bicameral legislature.
The U.S. Constitution leaves it up to the states to determine their own voting laws. The
State Legislatures set a standard that only white property owning men can vote.
❖ 1863- The Emancipation Proclamation
President Abraham Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863,
declaring that “all persons held as slaves” within the rebellious Confederate states “are,
and henceforward shall be free,” consequently ending slavery in southern rebel states.
This proclamation was issued at the start of the third year of the civil war and allowed
Black men into the Union Army and the Navy.
❖ 1865- 13
th
Amendment
The 13
th
Amendment, ratified on December 6, 1865, stated that “Neither slavery nor
involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have
been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their
jurisdiction.” This abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in all of America, freeing
all slaves and marking the beginning of civil rights for African Americans.
❖ 1866- Civil Rights Act
The Civil Rights Act of 1866 was the first legislation to define citizenship and declare all
citizens as equally protected under the law. This act allowed all males born in the United
States to be regarded as citizens “without distinction of race or color, or previous
condition of slavery or involuntary servitude.”
❖ 1868- 14
th
Amendment
The 14
th
Amendment, adopted on July 9, 1868, stated that “all persons born or
naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of
the United States and of the state wherein they reside,” and “no states shall…deny to
any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” This amendment
extended the right to citizenship to everyone born or naturalized in America and granted
everyone immutable immunities and the equal protection of the law.
❖ 1870- 15
th
Amendment
The 15
th
Amendment, ratified on February 3, 1870, stated “The right of citizens of the
United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any
state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” This granted African
American men the right to vote. Nevertheless, states would go on to pass discriminatory
voter laws to suppress African Americans from voting.
❖ 1876- Supreme Court denies Native Americans the right to vote
based on the 14
th
Amendment
The Supreme Court case, Elk v. Wilkins, denied John Elk, a Native American, the right
to vote, as Justice Gray stated Elk had no claims over citizenship since he had never
been naturalized. Despite renouncing his tribal affiliation, assimilating to a U.S. state,
learning to speak English, and paying taxes, Elk was denied the right to vote. This set a
precedent that Native Americans who paid taxes did not have the right to vote.
❖ 1877- Jim Crow Laws are passed to keep African Americans from
voting
Southern states and border states passed a series of laws that would now become
known as “Jim Crow Laws” which enforced racial segregation. These laws formally
began around 1877 when the Supreme Court ruled that they could not prohibit
segregation on common modes of public transportation.
❖ 1882- The Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act, signed into law on May 6, 1882, barred all immigration of
Chinese laborers for the next 10 years and affirmed that all Chinese immigrants were
ineligible for naturalization. The Supreme Court had ruled decades earlier that the
Chinese were unable to testify in court, hence, they could not fight against these
discriminatory laws. Due to this ineligibility for naturalization, the Chinese in effect were
unable to be granted any rights or protections, including the right to vote.
❖ 1887- Dawes Act:
The Dawes Act, passed into law in 1887, allowed the federal government to divide up
tribal land into individual plots. This act was passed to promote assimilation of Native
Americans. Only those who agreed to the division of tribal lands and registered with the
Office of Indian Affairs were eligible to become U.S. citizens and receive the plot.
However, this resulted in the social structure of the tribes to weaken as Native
Americans were used to a communal style of living. The failure of this act led the
government to hold more of a “hands-off” policy, giving Native Americans the choice
between enfranchisement or self-government.
❖ 1890- Wyoming becomes the first state to legislate voting for women
in its constitution.
The Wyoming state convention became the first state to grant White female citizens the
right to vote as they passed their state Constitution that included a provision allowing
female citizens to vote on September 30, 1889.
❖ 1896- Several southern states pass "grandfather clauses" to prevent
former slaves and their descendants from voting
Several southern states already had amendments in place in their state Constitutions
that required voters to be able to read and write English, or own property valued at $300
or more. However, the “Grandfather Clause” allowed a man to vote, regardless of these
previous requirements, if their grandfather or father had voted before January 1, 1867.
This allowed White men to still be able to vote even if they could not pass the literacy
tests. However, this clause prevented free African Americans from voting as their
grandfathers could not vote before 1867.
❖ 1918- World War I advanced women’s suffrage and granted U.S.
citizenship for the Native Americans that served during World War I
World War I helped shift the political attitudes toward women as they filled the jobs left
vacant by men when they had to serve in the war. Women supported war efforts and
even served overseas as nurses and relief workers. This proved to the country that
women were able to set aside their traditional duties to help the nation and deserved the
right to vote. World War I also helped Native veterans obtain citizenship because
Congress saw their willingness to fight in the war even though they were not required to
serve.
❖ 1920- 19
th
Amendment
The 19
th
Amendment, ratified on August 18, 1920, stated that “the right of citizens of the
United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any
State on account of sex.” This granted White women the ability to vote. However,
women of color would still face countless hurdles, for the next few decades, to be able
to exercise that right freely.
❖ 1922- The Supreme Court rules that people of Japanese heritage
and Asian Indians are ineligible to become naturalized citizens.
In the Supreme Court case, Ozawa v. United States, Takao Ozawa was a U.S. college
graduate living and working in Hawaii when his application for citizenship was denied
because of his race. The Court ruled that people of Asian descent were ineligible to
naturalize as citizens. They affirmed the 1790 Nationality Act that Asians were ineligible
to naturalize to become citizens because they were considered racially not “White.”
❖ 1924- The Indian Citizenship Act grants citizenship to Native
Americans, but states pass various laws to keep them from voting
The Indian Citizenship Act, passed on June 2, 1924, granted citizenship to all Native
Americans born within the territorial limits of the United States. However, the right to
vote was left up to the states, in which they passed laws that barred Native Americans
from exercising their right to vote.
❖ 1943- Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act
The Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act was passed to repeal discriminatory exclusion laws
that barred Chinese immigrants from immigrating to the United States. This act also
required the U.S. to fill an immigration quota of around 105 visas per year for Chinese
immigrants. This was largely motivated by Japanese propaganda during World War II,
and the act was passed in efforts to improve the U.S.- Chinese relations during WWII.
❖ 1945- World War II served as a catalyst for the Civil Rights
Movements and Racial Reform
While many White men went to serve in the war, African American men filled the
manufacturing jobs that were previously occupied by their White counterparts. This
allowed them to learn new skills and join unions. Additionally, when many African
American soldiers returned home from serving in the war, they were confronted with a
wide array of racial injustice and segregation. These soldiers fought to dismantle the
racial injustice overseas but still suffered from it at home. This motivated a lot of African
Americans to join the Civil Rights Movement.
❖ 1952- The Immigration and Nationality Act and McCarran-Walter Act
The Immigration and Nationality Act, signed into law in June 1952, extended
immigration quotas to all countries and removed the racial restrictions of obtaining
citizenship by naturalization. However, the majority of these quotas were allocated to
European countries, whereas Asian countries still constituted a small fraction of these
quotas and were the only ones tracked by their race. The revised Immigration and
Nationality Act of 1965, however, abolished these quotas and promoted an immigration
policy that reunited families and prioritized skilled labor.
❖ 1961- 23
rd
Amendment
The 23
rd
Amendment, ratified on March 29, 1961, granted citizens residing in the District
of Columbia, the ability to vote in the Presidential elections.
❖ 1964- 24
th
Amendment
The 24
th
Amendment, ratified on January 23, 1964, states that “the right of citizens of
the United States to vote … shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any
State by reason of failure to pay poll tax or other tax.” This consequently prohibited
Congress and the states from passing poll taxes to bar anyone from voting.
❖ 1965- Voting Rights Act
The Voting Rights Act, passed into law on August 6, 1965, abolished any discriminatory
practices that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote. This
banned literacy tests and allowed the Federal Government to monitor and perform
oversight on voter registration and state laws regarding voting in states that had a
history of discriminating against African Americans from voting.
❖ 1971- 26th Amendment
The 26
th
Amendment, ratified on July 1, 1971, states that “the right of citizens of the
United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.” This lowered the
legal age to vote from 21 to 18. The amendment was a result of young men being
conscripted to serve in the Vietnam War but were unable to exercise their right to vote
or voice their concerns in government.
❖ 1984- Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act
The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act, passed on September 28,
1984, required polling locations to be accessible and available for the elderly and
people with disabilities. If there are no accessible polling locations available, voters
must have an alternative means of voting. Accessible voting registration and aids must
also be available to the elderly and people with disabilities.
❖ 1993- National Voter Registration Act
The National Voter Registration Act, also known as the Motor Vehicle Act, made voting
opportunities easier to access for all Americans. This act allowed all Americans to
register to vote at their local Department of Motor Vehicle location using a simplified
form whenever they applied or renewed their license or ID. This act also required the
USPS to mail all election materials.
❖ 2000- Residents in U.S. colonies are citizens, but cannot vote
In the months leading up to the Presidential election of 2000, a federal court ruled that
residents in U.S. colonies are recognized as U.S. citizens but do not have the right to
vote in the presidential elections nor are colonies entitled to a seat in the House of
Representatives or the Senate.
❖ 2002- Help America Vote Act
The Help America Vote Act completely reformed the voting process following the
Presidential election of 2000. This act was passed in efforts to increase voter education
and turnout. HAVA allocated billions of dollars to states to replace voting machines,
created the Election Assistance Commission, and created better access for people with
disabilities.
❖ 2006- Indiana becomes the first state to pass Voter ID laws
Although various states passed voter ID laws prior to 2006, Indiana was the first state to
pass a strict voter ID law, requiring all voters to present a government-issued ID card
before voting at the polls. This sparked a series of strict voter ID laws and voter
suppression acts in other states, which disproportionally disenfranchises low income
communities and communities of color as they may not be able to afford an ID card.
❖ 2013- Shelby County v. Holder
In Shelby County v. Holder, the Supreme Court upheld Shelby County’s petition that
section 5 of the Voting Rights Act violated their 10
th
Amendment and Article IV. Section
5 of the Voting Rights Act required certain states to obtain federal preclearance before
they made any changes to their election laws to ensure states did not make any laws
prohibiting Americans from exercising their right to vote on the basis of race. This ruling
invalidated provisions of the Voting Rights Act and marked the beginning of several
states passing laws to disenfranchise their minority voters.
❖ 2019- The Voting Rights Advancement Act was introduced and
passed in the House
The Voting Rights Advancement Act restores the original protections of the Voting
Rights Act and modernize the coverage formula of the Voting Rights Act to determine
which states have a history of discrimination. This act would also ensure that voters are
notified of all last-minute voting changes and would allow the federal government to
send federal observers to polling locations that have a risk of discrimination. This bill
passed the House in December 2019 and reintroduced in the Senate in June 2020.