The ''Women's Franchise Act'' is an act of the
Parliament of Canada
The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...
. Passed in 1918, the act allowed female citizens of
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
to vote in federal elections.
Universal suffrage was not attained in 1918, as women electors had to meet the same requirements as men in order to vote.
History
Predecessors
In 1917, the federal ''
Wartime Elections Act
The Canadian ''Wartime Elections Act'' was a bill passed on September 20, 1917 by the Conservative government of Robert Borden during the Conscription Crisis of 1917 and was instrumental in pushing Liberals to join the Conservatives in the formati ...
'' had increased the number of people who were eligible to vote. The federal ''
Military Voters Act
The ''Military Voters Act'' was a World War I piece of Canada, Canadian legislation passed in 1917, giving the right to vote to all Canadian soldiers. The act was significant for swinging the newly enlarged military vote in the Unionist Party (C ...
'' granted the right to vote to about 2,000 women who were military nurses. However, both of these acts disenfranchised those who were conscientious objectors to the war. People who had been born in enemy countries and became British subjects after 1902 were also disenfranchised. An exception was granted to people who had arrived in Canada and emigrated from these countries before they had been annexed by Germany (including those born in France, Italy, and Denmark). Individuals whose first language was deemed to belong to an enemy country, even if they had emigrated from an allied country, were disenfranchised.
See also
*
Women's suffrage in Canada
Women's suffrage in Canada occurred at different times in different jurisdictions to different demographics of women. Women's right to vote began in the three prairie provinces. In 1916, suffrage was earned by women in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and ...
*
Feminism in Canada
The history of feminism in Canada has been a gradual struggle aimed at establishing equal rights. The history of Canadian feminism, like modern Western feminism in other countries, has been divided by scholars into four "waves", each describing a ...
* ''
Dominion Elections Act
The ''Dominion Elections Act'' was a bill passed by the House of Commons of Canada in 1920, under Robert Borden's Unionist Party (Canada), Unionist government. The Act allowed white women to run for the Parliament of Canada. However, women from ...
''
References
{{Reflist ,
refs=
[{{cite web , title=A History of the Vote in Canada , url=https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=res&dir=his&document=index&lang=e , website=Elections Canada , accessdate=March 5, 2023]
Women's suffrage in Canada
Canadian federal legislation