The Nineteenth Amendment was ratified on August 18, 1920, giving American women a constitutional voting-rights guarantee.
Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the amendment, supplying the three-fourths majority required under Article V of the Constitution. The state’s decisive vote came from Harry Burn, a young legislator who changed his position after receiving advice from his mother, Febb Burn.
Congress had approved the amendment in June 1919, and it was formally certified on August 26, 1920. The amendment states that voting rights cannot be denied by the United States or a state on account of sex.
Ratification marked a major victory for the woman suffrage movement, whose campaign had lasted for generations. It did not eliminate every barrier to voting: discriminatory laws and practices continued to exclude many Black women and other women, especially in states where racial disfranchisement remained entrenched. The amendment therefore expanded constitutional protection without creating equal access overnight.