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Religious qualifications, instituted in colonial days, quickly disappeared. No state has had a religious test for voting since 1810.
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Wyoming, while still a territory, had given women the right to vote in 1869. By 1920 more than half of the states had followed that lead.
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The 15th amendment, ratified in 1870, was intended to protect any citizen from being denied the right to vote because of race or color.
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The 19th amendment prohibited the denial of the right to vote because of sex. Its ratification in 1920 completed the third expansion of suffrage.
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During this time, federal legislation and court decisions focused on securing African Americans a full role in the electoral process in all states.
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The 23rd Amendment, passed in 1961, added the voters of the district of columbia to the presidential electorate.
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The 24th amendment, ratified in 1964, eliminated the poll tax as a condition for voting in any federal election.
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The voting rights act of 1965 and its later extensions, racial equality finally became fast in polling booths throughout the country.
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The 26th amendment was adopted in 1971. It provides that no state can set the minimum age for voting at more than 18 years of age.
