Who Got to Vote?
Voter disenfranchisement has a long and storied history in New York State and the nation as a whole. Under the state’s original constitution, less than 10 percent of the population could vote. Extending voting rights to all citizens has been a slow, often contentious process. Even today, although many of the legal barriers to voting have been removed, non-English speakers, the homeless, and the disabled still have trouble casting their ballots.
1777 New York State’s first constitution establishes a tiered voting system based on wealth
Who votes:
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Adult male citizens owning at least $100 worth of real property can vote in local elections and for New York State Assembly. Those owning $250 worth or more can also vote for State Senate, governor, and federal offices.
Who doesn’t:
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Adult male citizens owning less than $100 worth of property including tenant farmers, urban renters, and the working poor of all races
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Enslaved Blacks
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Native Americans
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Foreign nationals
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Women
1821 New York’s constitution is amended to do away with property requirements for whites, while raising them for Blacks
Who votes:
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Adult white male citizens who are up-to-date on their taxes and have not been convicted of a felony
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Adult Black male citizens who own at least $250 worth of real estate and have free papers
Who doesn’t:
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Enslaved Blacks
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Free Blacks owning less than $250 of property
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Native Americans
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Foreign nationals
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Women
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Convicted felons
1826 New York’s constitution is amended to remove the tax requirements for voting
Who votes:
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Adult white male citizens who have not been convicted of a felony
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Adult Black male citizens who own at least $250 worth of real estate and have free papers
Who doesn’t:
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Enslaved Blacks
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Free Blacks owning less than $250 of property
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Native Americans
-
Foreign nationals
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Women
-
Convicted felons
1870 Passage of the 15th Amendment prevents states from discriminating against voters based on race
Who votes:
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Adult male citizens of all races who have not been convicted of a felony
Who doesn’t:
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Native Americans
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Foreign nationals
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Women
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Convicted felons
1917 New York State’s constitution is amended to allow for women’s suffrage
Who votes:
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Adult citizens of all races and both sexes who have not been convicted of a felony
Who doesn’t:
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Native Americans
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Foreign nationals
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Convicted felons
Women’s Suffrage handbills produced by the Empire State Campaign Committee, 1915
1920 Passage of the 19th Amendment prevents states from discriminating against voters based on sex
Who votes:
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Adult citizens of all races and both sexes who have not been convicted of a felony
Who doesn’t:
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Native Americans
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Foreign nationals
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Convicted felons
1924 Congress passes the Snyder Act, declaring Native Americans to be US citizens
Who votes:
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Adult citizens who have not been convicted of a felony, now including Native Americans
Who doesn’t:
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Foreign nationals
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Convicted felons
1965 Congress passes the Voting Rights Act, preventing various voter suppression tactics including poll taxes, literacy tests, etc.
Who votes:
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Adult citizens who have not been convicted of a felony
Who doesn’t:
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Foreign nationals
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Convicted felons
1965 Congress passes the Immigration and Nationality Act, allowing Asian immigrants to become naturalized citizens
Who votes:
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Adult citizens who have not been convicted of a felony, now including naturalized Asian Americans
Who doesn’t:
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Foreign nationals
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Convicted felons
2018 Governor Cuomo issues executive order granting paroled felons the right to vote in New York State
Who votes:
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Adult citizens who have never been convicted of a felony and felons who have served their sentences and been paroled
Who doesn’t:
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Foreign nationals
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Convicted felons still serving their sentences