Women's Suffrage and the Law: Legal Battles and Milestones

New Zealand was the first self-governing country to grant women the right to vote in 1893.

Sandra Day O'Connor was the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States, appointed in 1981.

The 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1920, granted women the right to vote.

Alice Paul was the leader of the National Woman's Party, which played a significant role in the fight for women's suffrage in the United States.

In Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan (1982), the Supreme Court ruled that states could not deny women the right to vote based on sex.

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), adopted in 1979, prohibits discrimination against women in political and public life.

Victoria Woodhull was the first woman to run for President of the United States, in 1872.

Saudi Arabia was the last country to grant women the right to vote, in 2015.

Margaret Thatcher was the first woman to serve as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1979 to 1990.

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) is the international organization dedicated to promoting gender equality and women's empowerment.

There has not yet been a woman President of the United States.

Rwanda has the highest percentage of women in parliament, at 61.3%.

There has not yet been a woman Chief Justice of the United States.

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), adopted in 1979, requires states to take steps to eliminate discrimination against women in all areas of life.

Nancy Pelosi was the first woman to serve as Speaker of the House in the United States, from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2019 to present.