From Early Stories to Today · Drawing 37
The right to vote
1940
In 1940, a law gave women the right to vote in provincial elections. Indigenous women living on reserves still had to wait until 1969.
Look together
Where is the woman putting her ballot?
An idea to try
Choose a light topic together, such as the next book to read. Each person shares a choice and a reason. Explain that this family discussion introduces listening, without reproducing all the rules of an election.
For the adult reading along
A little more to discover
The law giving women the right to vote and stand as candidates in provincial elections received assent on April 25, 1940. Élections Québec recalls the work of French- and English-speaking activists, including Idola Saint-Jean and Thérèse Casgrain. However, the change did not end every exclusion: Indigenous women living on reserves gained this provincial right in 1969.
With a young child, discuss having a voice and taking part in a shared choice. Keep provincial and federal elections distinct. The illustrated woman is fictional. She represents the act of voting after the law, not an election held on the day it received assent.
Sources and context
These links lead to other websites. Explore them with an adult. Source titles appear in their original language; some linked pages are in French.
Source review: 2026-09-12. Illustrations simplify places and scenes; they are not historical documents.