On the Senate Floor, Ranking Member Klobuchar Celebrates Centennial of Women’s Constitutional Right to Vote

Klobuchar joined her colleagues on the Senate floor to recognize the importance of the women’s suffrage movement that led to the 19th amendment, guaranteeing and protecting women’s constitutional right to vote

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (MN) took to the Senate floor to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the 19th Amendment. Klobuchar joined her colleagues on the Senate floor to recognize the importance of the women’s suffrage movement that led to the 19th amendment, guaranteeing and protecting women’s constitutional right to vote.

“Just think, 100 years ago today, the Senate voted to guarantee and protect the women’s constitutional right to vote, marking an important milestone in our democracy. My home state of Minnesota was the 15th state to ratify the 19th Amendment and women like Dr. Mary Jackman Colburn, Sarah Burger Sterns, and Clara Ueland, and Sarah Tarleton Colvin fought to make it happen,” Klobuchar said in her remarks.

“We also must remember that, in addition to people like Elizabeth Caty Stanton, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucretia Mott, Susan B. Anthony, the African American suffragists that were in the lead, Harriet Tubman, Ida B. Wells, Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, and Margaret Murray Washington.

“When I arrived in the Senate there were only 16 women, led by the Dean of the women Senators who is here with us today, Senator Barbara Mikulski. We now have as noted by my colleagues, 25 women senators. But that is an all-time high. Because when you look at the history of the Senate there’s been nearly 2,000 male senators and only 56 women. I was on the Trevor Noah show a few months ago and he said if a night club had that kind of ratio they would shut it down. But in fact we are at an all-time high with 25 women senators with more to come.

“My colleagues have mentioned the challenges ahead. We have to make sure more people can vote, that we don’t suppress votes. We need to pass the Equal Rights Amendment, we need to make sure we have equal pay. There are many, many challenges ahead, but today we celebrate, because we all stand on the shoulders of those before us. And in our case we stand on the very broad shoulders of our friend Barbara Mikulski.”

Video of Klobuchar’s remarks is available here.

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