Photo by Mr. T in DC.

“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”

So reads the text of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which was ratified by a one-vote margin on this day in 1920 by the Tennessee General Assembly — the thirty-sixth state legislature to ratify, thereby ensuring American women the Constitutional right to vote. Of course, the District never even got a chance to vote on the amendment’s ratification, since we weren’t (and aren’t) a state.

All 48 states who were established at the time of the amendment’s proposal on June 4, 1919 eventually approved the amendment, but it’s interesting to see how many of them rejected it initially — including our immediate neighbors. Maryland and Virginia both rejected the amendment in February 1920, though they both eventually reversed course and approved it post-ratification in 1941 and 1952, respectively. Delaware, Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi all also rejected the amendment. Eventually, they all eventually approved, though some took longer than others: Mississippi, for instance, took nearly 64 years to give the thumbs up, finally approving the Congressional proposal on March 22, 1984.

Because equal voting rights is something that still eludes the District to this day, the League of Women Voters has planned a day-long silent demonstration in Lafayette Park on August 26th to recognize the anniversary of the amendment’s passage.