Peruvian Suffragist history

Peruvian women before 1955 were denied the right to vote and Peruvian society deemed them only worthy of household chores. It was through the work of Maria Jesus Alvarado, Adela Montesinos, Zoila Aurora Cáceres and Elvira Garcia that women began to fight for their rights in Peruvian society.

María Jesus Alvarado

Zoila Aurora Caceres

While many conservatives denied the idea outright some other such as Victor Andres Belaunde believed in a “progressive” vote meaning that only working women were allowed to vote in the workplace and eventually to municipal elections, he also believed that until women were electorally educated they could not vote in presidential elections.

It was during the government of Manuel Arturo Odría Amoretti that women were granted the right to suffrage (Law No.12391) on September 7 1955. This law also gave women the right to citizenship however, this law denied suffrage to women that were illiterate. This meant that in 1956 many women were denied to the right to vote as the illiteracy rates were high due to poor education.

It was not until 1979 that a new law was established which allowed all women to vote regardless of their educational background.

Hope you enjoy this little part of Peruvian history :) bye bye!