As part of a packed schedule during their October 15th meeting, the Citizens Coinage Advisory Council (CCAC) released candidate images of the 2020 Women’s Suffrage Centennial medal. The candidates, 18 in all, depict various images celebrating the 100th anniversary of women winning the right to vote in the United States.
The 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution granted American women the right to vote. It was ratified on August 18, 1920. The bill for the Amendment was originally introduced on June 4, 1919 meaning it took over a year to finally pass and then be ratified by the states of the United States. Ratification of an Amendment to the Constitution requires two-thirds of the State to ratify it before it take effect. It was the culmination of nearly a century of petitioning and protest to give women the right to vote. The 2020 Women’s Suffrage Centennial medal is meant to honor that struggle as well as the passing of the 19th Amendment.
Below are the candidates for the medal:
It will likely be the middle part of 2020 before a final design for the medal is selected and recommended to the United States Treasury and then to the Mint. Production of the medal will begin at that point with it being available later in 2020. The legislation for the medal passed on June 4, 2019 and took just five weeks to become law. That is exceptionally short given most of these types of coins and medals spend months in the House and Senate. That quick vote and passing indicates the importance of honoring this key moment in the history of the United States.
It is likely that this medal will have a limited production run when the Mint does being making them in 2020. Most medals of this type have a production run of 50,000 pieces or less.