She Became America’s First Female Mayor — Because Of A Sexist Prank
Hoping to humiliate women in politics, a group of men jokingly nominated Susanna Salter for mayor of a Kansas town in 1887. But they didn’t expect her to win. On April 4 , 1887 , a untried woman named Susanna Salter was nominated for city manager of Argonia , Kansas . Her nomination was supposed to be a joke — but she got the last gag . Before women wereguaranteed the right field to votein America , states and townspeople could settle for themselves whether to allow women in politics ....