4.7 Expanding Democracy

Suffrage

The right to vote in political elections.

Property Ownership Requirements

Restrictions that limited voting to individuals who owned property, which were abolished by 1856.

Universal White Male Suffrage

The right to vote granted to all white males, regardless of property ownership, established after abolishing property requirements.

Voting Statistics 1800

Less than 10% of adult males in the United States could vote.

Voting Statistics 1830

58% of white male voters had the right to vote.

Voting Statistics 1860

80% of white adult males had voting rights, with exceptions in South Carolina and Rhode Island.

Democratization

The process of making a political system more democratic, though incomplete in this context.

Voting Rights Restrictions

Laws that favored certain groups over others, such as Southern laws favoring planters and denying votes to free Black Americans and women.

Electors in 1800

In 1800, electors were chosen by state legislatures in 10 states; only 5 states had direct elections.

Western States Voting Rights

Western states initially guaranteed voting rights for all adult white males, contrasting with older states.