Before the 19th Amendment granted nationwide women''s suffrage in 1920, 20 states already allowed women to vote, nearly all of them in the West. Wyoming led the way, granting women voting rights as a territory in 1869 and entering the Union in 1890 as the first state with full women''s suffrage. Colorado followed in 1893, Idaho in 1896, and Utah in 1896 when it became a state. Between 1910 and 1919, a dozen more western states joined them: Washington, California, Arizona, Kansas, Oregon, Montana, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Alaska Territory. By 1919, 15 states granted full voting rights to women, with only two east of the Mississippi. The western pattern reflected different gender dynamics on the frontier, progressive political movements, and strategic efforts by western politicians to attract female settlers. These state victories built momentum for the federal amendment campaign and proved women''s suffrage wouldn''t destroy democracy, undercutting opponents'' apocalyptic predictions.