Universal Suffrage: A History and Analysis of Voting in the Church and Society

The term,“Universal Suffrage,”is being used in this booklet as a synonym for “Democracy.” Historically the term referred to any form of “individual suffrage” as opposed to “representational suffrage.” Even though the women’s rights movement of the 1800’s was one form of universal suffrage, the term goes far beyond women’s rights. As we will see in this booklet, the differences between an individualistic approach to suffrage and a representational approach has profound ramifications.