1.2 a wider franchise and debates over suffrage Flashcards
What is franchise/suffrage?
- the ability, or right, to vote in public elections
Who can vote in the UK?
- all adults over the age of 18
- British and Irish citizens have reciprocal rights to vote in each others countries
- commonwealth citizens
- UK nationals who have lived abroad for less than 15 years
Who can’t vote in the UK?
- people under the age of 18
- EU citizens
- members of the HoL
- prisoners
- those convicted of a corrupt or illegal electoral practice, who are barred for 5 years
- people compulsorily detained in a psychiatric hospital
Anomalies in the electoral system before the 19th century
- two types of constituency, varied in size, right to vote was restricted to those who owned freehold property worth at least 40 shillings, voting qualifications varied between boroughs
- distribution of parliamentary seats did not keep up with economic growth and population movement
- plural voting allowed wealthy men, who owned property in more than one constituency to vote more than once
- women were excluded from voting
How big was the electorate in the early 19th century?
400000
What was The Great Reform Act of 1832?
- abolished the separate representation of the ‘rotten boroughs’ and created seats for urban areas
- granted the vote to new categories e.g tenant farmers and smaller property holders
- created a standard qualification for the franchise in the boroughs, included the middle class
Who helped to start to change the franchise?
National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS) in 1897
Who led the NUWSS?
Millicent Fawcett
The development of the electoral system after the Great Reform Act of 1832
1867 = borough householders enfranchised (electorate = 13% of the adult population)
1884 = rural householders (electorate = 25% of the adult population)
1918 = all men over 21 and women over 30 (electorate = 75%)
1928 = terms for men and women equalised, both aged 21 (electorate = 100%)
- 1948 = end of plural voting
- 1969 = voting age reduced to 18
What were members of the NUWSS known as?
suffragists
Who was part of the NUWSS?
- mainly middle-class women who believed in non-violent methods of persuasion e.g peaceful demonstrations, petitions and lobbying MPs
Who formed the Women’s Social and Political Union in 1903?
Emmeline Pankhurst
What were the Women’s Social and Political Union dubbed as?
suffragettes
Who did the WSPU attract and what did they do?
- attracted both working and middle class support
- used more militant tactics
What was the aim of the WSPU?
- to attract publicity and put pressure on parliament through attacks on well-known institutions
- disruption of political meetings and other prominent male-dominated public activities
Example of a WSPU demonstration
- in 1913, Emily Davison threw herself under the king’s horse at the Epsom Derby
What did the suffragettes do when imprisoned?
- went on hunger strike
- led to authorities resorting to force-feeding
What did the suffragettes do in the WW1?
- they showed moderation in suspending their campaign
What was the 1918 Representation of the People Act?
- the act was passed mainly due to growing pressure to give all working-class men the vote
- women over the age of 30, who were householders or wives of householders, were granted the vote at the same time
Arguments for votes at 16
- there is a youth parliament
- they have other legal rights e.g. school, start work, join the armed forces
- they would be more likely to take part in politics (3/4 of voted in the Scottish referendum)
- having a vote would mean that 16-17 year olds would have a say on issues that effect them
Arguments against votes at 16
- young people lack the necessary life experience and maturity to vote
- very few countries allow 16 year olds to vote
