Final answer:
Enlightenment ideas laid the groundwork for expanded suffrage by promoting individual rights and challenging hereditary privilege. This led to key democratic reforms, such as the 15th and 19th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and influenced social movements that eventually secured voting rights for previously excluded groups.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Enlightenment ideas marked a profound shift in the understanding of government and individual rights, particularly influencing the concept of expanded suffrage during the 18th and 19th centuries. Classical liberalism, a product of the Enlightenment, argued for rights and freedoms based on individual merit rather than hereditary privilege. This ideology directly challenged the exclusive rights of the aristocracy and set the stage for democratic reforms. The Declaration of Independence and the subsequent American Revolution were inspired by these liberal ideas, emphasizing the importance of representation and the right to vote to prevent government abuse of power.
Following the American example, the Reform Bill of 1867 in Britain expanded suffrage to many working-class men, doubling the electorate. This growth of democratic participation was also seen in the United States with the eventual adoption of the notion that all adult White male citizens should vote by the 1830s. Moreover, the 15th and 19th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution further expanded the right to vote to include Black Americans and women, respectively. Notably, thinkers like Benjamin Franklin and John Stuart Mill contributed to the discourse on the intrinsic value of voting as an expression of political equality, arguing against limiting suffrage to property-owning males and advocating for broader inclusion.
Despite these advances, Enlightenment ideals did not initially advocate for universal equality, with most thinkers of the time still excluding women, non-whites, and lower social classes from political and social rights. However, over time, activists built upon Enlightenment principles to champion universal suffrage, eventually culminating in the inclusive suffrage victories of the 20th century resulting from the women's rights movements and Progressive Era reforms. Groups such as those at the Seneca Falls Convention utilized Enlightenment-inspired declarations to justify suffrage for women, linking to the broader struggle for social and political equality.