The Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified on August 18, 1920 and certified on August 26, 1920, prohibits denying citizens the right to vote on the basis of sex, finally securing women's suffrage nationwide. This historic victory was the culmination of a decades-long movement, sparked by the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention and driven by iconic leaders like Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Alice Paul, and Lucy Burns, who fought for a national amendment after an initial proposal was introduced in 1878. The amendment finally passed Congress in May and June of 1919, aided by shifting public opinion during World War I and the support of President Woodrow Wilson, and withstood two Supreme Court challenges—Leser v. Garnett and Fairchild v. Hughes—after its ratification. Although it enfranchised approximately 26 million women in time for the 1920 presidential election, the amendment notably failed to fully protect African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American women, who still faced discriminatory voting barriers. Following its adoption, activists like Alice Paul turned their focus to the Equal Rights Amendment, believing it was a necessary next step, while the powerful, unified "women's bloc" that politicians feared took decades to fully materialize.