How has the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution affected the government?

Ratified on August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America was the culmination of a long -- the birth of the women's suffrage movement was in 1848, but the struggle for equality predated that development by hundreds of years -- effort on the part of women for the right to vote in elections. The main sentence in this two-sentence amendment reads as follows:

"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."

The effects of the 19th Amendment have been profound. For the first time in the nation's history, the female perspective was overtly reflected in the outcome of elections. While certain women had enjoyed considerable influence over the decisions of men within the confines of homes, they had been institutionally treated as second-class citizens by virtue of their lack of the power assured them with ratification of this amendment. 

The full effects of the 19th Amendment were not immediately felt by the female electorate. Even today, many women feel that passage of an "Equal Rights Amendment" is necessary to ensure full equality, including in the workplace, where women continue to earn less than men in comparable positions. There is no doubt, however, that women enjoy far more influence over the course of this nation's history because of the 19th Amendment than would otherwise have been the case. And that influence is felt in the liberal-leanings of the majority of female voters, especially on issues like reproductive (abortion) rights, tax credits for child care, availability of child care for women who would otherwise not have such assistance (particularly true in the case of female members of the Armed Forces), and in numerous other ways. Broadly, the distinctions between the genders on many, especially domestic issues are reflected in voter patterns, with women tending to vote for social welfare programs in greater numbers and women being more inclined to support increased government involvement in Americans' day-to-day lives. [See: Rutgers University Center for American Women and Politics, Gender Gap in Voting, http://www.cawp.rutgers.edu/facts/voters/gender_gap]

Women make up just over half of the nation's population. Including their perspectives in elections through their direct participation could not help but fundamentally transform the nature of elective politics in the United States. With a woman on the verge of being the first to be the nominee for president of the United States from one of the two major political parties, the effects of the 19th Amendment's ratification are more apparent than ever, but the full effect is yet to be determined.