How Much do you Know About United States Voting Rights?

The ideals of the Constitution were pretty lofty, and as it turns out, a bit hollow, too. When the country was first established, only white males could vote -- and you had to be a landowner, too. Everyone else was left out of the process.

The Constitution only vaguely addressed voting rights. Instead, it allowed individual states to decide that matter -- and that turned into a very, very sticky situation.

Suffrage is the right to vote. It is one of the most important elements of free societies that attempts to balance equal rights for as many people as possible.

Not even close. Various nations and entities have allowed people to vote for thousands of years. The first nation to allow everyone the right to vote was the Corsican Republic, which existed for just a few years in the mid-1700s.

At age 18, American citizens are eligible to vote. In a delicious twist of irony, those same adults are not allowed to purchase alcohol.

Voting is a critical aspect of the American republic. Four of the 15 post-Civil War Amendments expanded voting rights to various groups that would otherwise still be somehow disenfranchised.

In truly democratic societies, universal suffrage is a reality. It means that every adult, regardless of race, sex, creed or other factors, is allowed to vote in public elections.

Just a few years after the end of the Civil War, the 15th Amendment altered the voting landscape by allowing people to vote regardless of, "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." Men who'd been enslaved just a few years earlier suddenly found themselves with voting power.

Even white males couldn't get a fair shake with regard to voting. It took more than half a century (1856) for America to allow poorer white men the right to vote.

Sadly, the 19th Amendment wasn't ratified until 1920. Happily, its long-overdue clauses finally gave women the power to vote.

Voting rights didn't always make sense. In some jurisdictions, women were already allowed to vote, especially if they were property owners.

From 1776 to 1807, women were free to vote in New Jersey. And then, in a giant leap backward, the right was revoked.

It used to be common for states to charge a poll tax to prospective voters. Oh, you can't afford to pay it? No voting for you! Poll taxes were yet another way for those in power to deny certain groups (particularly poorer people) the right to vote.

For years, literacy tests were used in some places, particularly Southern states, as a way to deny voting rights to black citizens. And for many years, they got away with it.

The 26th Amendment reasserted that all people over the age of 18 should be allowed to vote. And yet, many, many Americans over age 18 don't even bother to exercise their voting power.

With regard to voting, religion was one of the only factors that the Constitution addressed. And it specifically mentions that it simply doesn't matter what religion you do (or don't) follow, because it shouldn't affect your ability to cast a vote.

Young Americans are famously apathetic when it comes to voting. Fortunately, as they get older, they tend to get wiser and are more likely to exercise their voting rights.

During the social turbulence of the 1960s, authorities in some districts tried to suppress voting rights for certain groups. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 reinforced the 14th and 15th Amendments, essentially re-establishing and emphasizing rights that already existed.

In 1869, long before the women's suffrage movement really gained steam, Wyoming opted to let women vote. It was the first state in the Union to permanently offer voting rights to females.

The 24th Amendment ended the concept of poll taxes. Ratified in 1964, it ended the practice of collecting a tax from people who simply wanted to cast their votes.

No way. Slaves were never allowed to vote. When slavery was abolished at the end of 1865, former slaves were allowed to vote -- at least, in theory.

Most countries don't allow non-residents to vote in elections. America is no exception -- non-residents aren't allowed to cast ballots.

Compulsory suffrage refers to a situation where all eligible citizens are required to vote. Dozens of countries around the world practice compulsory suffrage to boost voter turnout.

It's known as "Bloody Sunday," because as the voting-rights marchers set off in Selma, they were attacked by law enforcement personnel. The unprovoked violence propelled the Civil Rights Movement to greater momentum.

The research is clear. People who have higher levels of education vote more often than people with less schooling.

Sure, women won the right to vote ... but they were less likely to exercise that right than men. So voter turnout statistics actually dropped once the 19th Amendment was ratified.

Before the 26th Amendment, you had to be 21 years old to vote. But during WWII, draft age was lowered to 18, and in the years following that conflict, Americans believed that if you were old enough to fight, you were old enough to vote.

Johnson was a proponent of reinforcing voting rights for everyone. "There is no constitutional issue here. The command of the Constitution is plain. There is no moral issue. It is wrong, deadly wrong, to deny any of your fellow Americans the right to vote in this country."

It's a dismal stain on America's voting record. Only about half of Americans vote during presidential elections. And during years when there is no presidential vote, that percentage drops even more.

Well, as you realize by now, it certainly wasn't America. In 1906, Finland opted to give all citizens the full ability to vote and also run for public office.