The List of anti-suffragists is an alphabetical list of individuals and organizations that publicly opposed extending voting rights to women. Entries are organised by country and cover politicians, writers, religious leaders and social reformers active throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Opponents argued that women’s suffrage would disrupt

traditional gender roles A gender role, or sex role, is a social norm deemed appropriate or desirable for individuals based on their gender or sex. Gender roles are usually centered on conceptions of masculinity and femininity. The specifics regarding these gendered ...

, undermine societal stability or weaken national institutions. Opposition spanned the political spectrum and included both men and women, some of whom believed that women’s influence belonged in domestic or

philanthropic Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

spheres while others claimed that women’s suffrage would hasten

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

secularism Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...

. Entries include notable individuals who campaigned through speeches, publications, parliamentary motions or membership of anti-suffrage organisations.

Europe

Austria

Belgium

Denmark

Finland

France

Germany

Greece

Iceland

Ireland

Italy

Netherlands

Norway

Portugal

Russia

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

United Kingdom

North America

Canada

Mexico

United States of America

Oceania

Australia

New Zealand

South America

Argentina

Brazil

Asia

China

Japan

Turkey

{, class="wikitable sortable" !Name !Lifespan !Occupation !Opposition to women’s suffrage , - , Kozmidi Efendi , 1870 – ? , Istanbul deputy , Per Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi, 1909, p. 356, he argued that Ottoman women "do not directly take part in political affairs … they vote only through the men to whom they are subject," and warned that giving them the franchise would mean "attempting something that even Europe has not yet done."Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi. (1909). ''Meclis‑i Mebusan zabıt ceridesi: 1 Haziran 1325  4 June 1909' (Vol. 4). TBMM Kütüphanesi. https://www.tbmm.gov.tr/tutanaklar/TUTANAK/MECMEB/mmbd01ic01c004/mmbd01ic01c004ink092.pdf , - , Lütfi Fikri Bey , 1872–1934{{Cite web , title=LUTFİ FİKRİ , url=https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/lutfi-fikri , access-date=2025-07-31 , website=TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi , language=tr , Dersim deputy , Rejected the idea of counting women in the electorate, likening them to "children, who also belong to the nation but are not allowed to vote" (pp. 355–356).Morack, E. (2021). Ottoman parliamentary procedure in the Chamber of Deputies (Meclis-i Mebusan) and the Great National Assembly of Turkey (Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi), 1876–1923. In ''Planting parliaments in Eurasia, 1850–1950'' (1st ed., pp. 223–253, 246). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003158608 He argued that, rather than being enfranchised, women should be represented in parliament by male deputies on their behalf

References

Society-related lists Anti-suffragists

anti-suffragists Anti-suffragism was a political movement composed of both men and women that began in the late 19th century in order to campaign against women's suffrage in countries such as Australia, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States. To ...