Which group primarily led the charge for expansion of suffrage during the Progressive Era?

The expansion of suffrage during the Progressive Era was primarily championed by women’s rights advocates. This period, roughly spanning from the 1890s to the 1920s, saw a significant mobilization of women who organized campaigns, protests, and advocacy efforts aimed at securing the right to vote. Key figures in this movement, such as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and later, Alice Paul and Carrie Chapman Catt, played crucial roles in pushing for suffrage at both state and national levels.

Women’s rights advocates worked tirelessly to highlight the inequalities women faced and argued that suffrage was essential for achieving broader social reforms. Their efforts included forming organizations such as the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and participating in public demonstrations, which collectively built momentum for the eventual passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920, granting women the right to vote.

While labor unions promoted various social and economic reforms during the Progressive Era, their primary focus was often on workers' rights and issues concerning labor conditions rather than specifically advocating for women's suffrage. Political machines might have had their own agendas, typically centered around power consolidation and voter manipulation, rather than a genuine effort to expand suffrage. Conservative activists generally resisted