Victoria California Claflin,
September 23rd, 1838,
In a few weeks’ time, unless they have another major brain malfunction, Americans will have another chance at electing their first-ever female President. The last one, Hilary Clinton, wasn’t the first woman to run for President, although she was the first woman to receive the nomination of one of the major parties. Plenty of women have stood for election, including Roseanne Barr in 2012, although her total of a little over 67,000 votes is funnier than anything she has ever said in the years since. Jo Jorgensen's 1,865,724 votes for the Libertarian Party last time around would indicate that there are at least 1,865,724 Americans who don't yet think that America is selfish enough (and thanks to the late Christopher Hitchens for that joke about Libertarians.)
However, none of the above were the first women to run for president of the United States. For that, we have to go all the way back to 1872, 152 years ago, and the candidacy of Victoria Woodhull, who was a pioneering feminist, suffragette, abolitionist, civil rights advocate, and, well, a bit of a controversial figure in other respects.
Victoria Woodhull was a trailblazing figure in 19th-century America, remembered as the first woman to run for the presidency, a suffragette, a businesswoman, and a champion of radical social reform. Born on September 23, 1838, in Homer, Ohio, Woodhull grew up in a poor and tumultuous family, where hardship was a constant companion. Despite receiving only a limited formal education, she displayed a keen intellect and a talent for oratory that would later propel her into the national spotlight. Her early life was marked by poverty, and by the age of 15, she married Canning Woodhull, a much older and frequently drunk physician, in what was an abusive and unhappy marriage. Their relationship soon deteriorated, and Woodhull, seeking more control over her life, divorced him in 1864—a scandalous act for a woman of her time.
Her second marriage to Colonel James Blood, a Civil War veteran and radical thinker, proved more supportive of her ambitions. Blood shared many of her progressive views, including those on women’s rights, spiritualism, and social reform. The couple moved to New York City, where Woodhull and her sister Tennessee Claflin became the first women to open a brokerage firm on Wall Street. This unprecedented move not only made them financially independent but also allowed them to promote their views through their newspaper, Woodhull & Claflin’s Weekly. The paper tackled controversial subjects, including women’s suffrage, labour reform, and even the first English translation of The Communist Manifesto. Most notably, the paper was a platform for Woodhull's advocacy of "free love," a philosophy that promoted the freedom to marry, divorce, and bear children without government interference.
In 1872, Woodhull launched an audacious bid for the presidency, becoming the first woman to do so. Running under the banner of the Equal Rights Party, her campaign was bold and revolutionary, advocating for women's suffrage, labour rights, and social reforms. Her selection of Frederick Douglass as her running mate—though symbolic, as there is no record of Douglass accepting the nomination—was emblematic of her commitment to equality and civil rights. However, her campaign was fraught with challenges, not least because women did not yet have the right to vote. The media frequently derided her as unfit and morally corrupt, largely because of her outspoken support for free love and her attacks on societal hypocrisy. Her presidential campaign faced a major setback when she was arrested just days before the election on charges of obscenity after publishing an exposé on the extramarital affair of Reverend Henry Ward Beecher. Although Woodhull received no electoral votes and was not listed on most ballots, her campaign was a landmark moment that paved the way for future generations of women in politics.
Woodhull's views extended beyond politics; she was a fervent advocate of women's reproductive rights, including access to contraception and the right to abortion. However, some of her beliefs were more controversial. She supported eugenics and, more disturbingly, advocated for the forced sterilization of those she considered unfit to reproduce, a stance that aligned with the darker aspects of early 20th-century social reform movements. Her views on eugenics have tainted her legacy, as the movement was often used to justify discrimination against marginalized communities.
In 1877, disillusioned with American politics and society, Woodhull moved to England, where she reinvented herself once again. She married her third husband, John Biddulph Martin, a wealthy banker, which provided her with the stability she had long sought. In England, Woodhull’s focus shifted from radical activism to education and social reform, particularly the promotion of women's access to higher education and professional opportunities. She established several organizations aimed at improving the educational landscape for women, advocating for reforms that would enable them to compete on an equal footing with men.
Woodhull’s life in England allowed her to distance herself from her controversial past and build a quieter, more conventional legacy centred on philanthropy and education reform. She wrote extensively, including numerous articles and speeches on the importance of equal access to education for women. This aspect of her work, though less known, contributed significantly to the broader movement for women's rights in Britain, helping to set the stage for later educational reforms that benefited countless women.
Woodhull’s legacy is a complex blend of pioneering achievements and contentious beliefs. She remains a figure of fascination and debate—a visionary who was ahead of her time in many respects but also deeply flawed by the standards of modern ethics. As the first woman to run for the U.S. presidency, she forced a national conversation on women’s rights, challenged the status quo, and defied the social mores of her era. Her advocacy for personal freedom, suffrage, and education reform marked her as a trailblazer, even as her support for eugenics and other controversial views cast a shadow over her legacy. Woodhull’s story is a testament to the contradictions inherent in those who dare to challenge society’s most entrenched beliefs, and it serves as a reminder of the complexities involved in the fight for progress.
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