the right of all adults (with minor exceptions) to vote in elections
universal suffrage in American English
noun
suffrage for all persons over a certain age, usually 18 or 21, who in other respects satisfy the requirements established by law
Word origin
[1700–10]This word is first recorded in the period 1700–10. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: camera, cirrus, emphatic, envelope, marquise
Examples of 'universal suffrage' in a sentence
universal suffrage
Then freedom for the citizen represented through the political right of universal suffrage.
Roper, Jon Democracy and its Critics - Anglo-American democratic thought in the nineteenth century (1989)
Electorally, we have universal suffrage over the age of 20.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Universal suffrage and mass education changed rhetoric.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Political parties formed the cornerstone of representative systems long before universal suffrage.
The Times Literary Supplement (2011)
And despite universal suffrage, the battle for equality continues.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
It also promised that the territory's leader would eventually be chosen through 'universal suffrage'.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
We're recovering from our second-worst defeat since the introduction of universal suffrage.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
They clamoured for universal suffrage and fulminated against the white man's laws.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Protesters say the proposal makes a sham of universal suffrage.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
It would be an election by universal suffrage.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The difference is that all of us today can play a direct role in choosing our leader thanks to universal suffrage.