Hi all,
Sorry if this is in the wrong place, I debated putting it into one of the other subreddits, but I thought this was probably the best one. I am writing a paper and one of the things I am touching on is the historical arguments made for restricting the right to vote to only specific groups in the United States. Mainly I would like to get some historical sources or essays that make the case as to why only educated, upperclass, landholders should be allowed to vote. I am mainly looking for American sources, particularly around the founding of the Constitution, but any foreign sources that influenced American thinking would be great as well.
So far I have unfortunately only been able to find arguments against this viewpoint and not for it and most of these come from more modern times.
Restricting voting to property owners is cited as an attempt to have only those vote that have a demonstrated interest in improving society. The thought is that if you have investments in the community, then you have a greater interest in protecting those investments and will be a informed, dutiful citizen as a result.
Woody Holton in Forced Founders: Indians, Debtors, Slaves, and the Making of the American Revolution in Virginia (The University of North Carolina Press, 1999), p. 218 briefly dives into enfranchisement in his analysis of revolutionary-era Virginia, and he argues that this was more of an excuse concocted by the gentry class than anything else. While George Mason voiced his concern about the influx of what he referred to as "ignorant or obscure" men winning elections and gaining seats on the legislature, he had very little reason to fear that the gentry class was going to be pushed out of power. Holton notes that the steps toward democracy in the state's 1776 constitution were relatively limited. The aristocratic-controlled legislature chose the Governor, the county Justices served life terms with vacancies being filled by their peers, and they even continued some vestigial traditions from the colonial period with the Governor appointing new Justices directly based on the recommendations of those currently sitting Justices. He concludes that limited voting rights simply came from the Virginia gentry's attempt to stay in firm control of the political system.
In this section, Holton cites Robert Beeman, The Old Dominion and the New Nation, 1788-1801 (Lexington, Ky., 1972) p. 33, 35. I wasn't able to find a digital copy online, but here is a review of the book that you might be able to access to determine if it will be helpful for you.
This is not an issue that was soon resolved in Virginia. This debate played out when forming their 1830 Constitution, when they were one of the few states in the nation to have such limited suffrage. I imagine that constitutional convention would be ripe for research on this topic.
Colonial Williamsburg Journal has a nice summary of the era's voting rights that may give you some ideas as well.
Be wary of using Google in searching this topic as this has recently become a re-politicized issue. Always confirm that your sources are good.