Victoria Woodhull nominated for President of the United States

Background. Victoria Woodhull, an American leader of the women's suffrage movement, ran for president in the 1872 election. She was nominated by the newly formed Equal Rights Party, which supported women's suffrage and equal rights. Her running mate was abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass, though he was unaware of his nomination at the time.

Eligibility and Age. Woodhull was ineligible to be president on Inauguration Day because she would not reach the constitutionally prescribed minimum age of 35 until September 23, 1873. The Constitution and law were silent on the issue of gender, so her ineligibility was strictly based on age. Historians debate whether her activities constituted a true election campaign.

Election Outcome. Woodhull received no electoral votes in the 1872 election, in which six different candidates received at least one electoral vote, and her share of the popular vote was negligible but unknown. An arrest prevented her from attempting to vote during the election.