Velveeta cheese, the Panama Canal, button-down Polo shirts and the Kentucky Derby are all older than the American woman’s right to vote.

One hundred years ago this week, the 19th Amendment was ratified, which gave women the right to vote in America. And even though not all women were given that right, it was a step on the road to equality for women in a country that’s been around for 244 years.

This week on “In Conversation,” we discuss the role of women voters and of elected officials who are women to change and shape the history and growth of the United States.

We talk about why it is important to vote, the importance of women in the electorate, the types of issues that are important to women, and the importance of women leadership. We also discuss how the right to vote for white women was one that other groups of women had to wait longer for, and how voting access continues to affect elections today.