That amendment was submitted during every session of Congress for 41 years and did not pass until May 1919. It was sent to the states for ratification, which took almost a year. On August 26, 1920, notice reached Washington, DC, and the amendment became the law of the land.
Fast forward to August 26, 2010, while Vermonters wait for what might be a lengthy recount of votes cast during the primary election on August 24. Two of the five candidates vying for the Democratic nomination for governor are women. One of those candidates is within sixth-tenths of a percentage point of the front runner.
Women are no strangers to the State House in Montpelier. Madeline Kunin was the state's first female governor. It's not hard to fathom another woman following in her footsteps.
What is hard to fathom, however, is the fact that so few Vermonters, male and female, took the time to vote during the primaries this week. Despite the fact that the grandmothers of candidates Deb Markowitz and Susan Bartlett had to struggle to win the right to vote - as did the grandmothers and mothers of many Vermonters - people could not unplug from their computers or televisions or smartphones long enough to cast their ballots.
Voter turnout in The Valley ranged from a high of 31 percent to a low of 21.4. Turnout throughout the state was not much higher. That's appalling.
There is no excuse for not voting. Polls are open for 12 hours. Absentee ballots make it possible to vote at your own convenience.
Excuse-makers who argue that the primary elections are only important if one cares about the races trivialize the process, trivialize the privilege of voting and are lazy about the responsibilities that come with citizenship.
-LAL
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