Between 1915 and 1919, the Senate proposed and voted on a women's suffrage amendment. These attempts failed.

With women playing an expanded role in the mobilization effort during World War I, the bill came before the House again on Jan. 10, 1918. On the prior evening, Wilson had appealed to the House to pass the bill. This time, it went through with one vote more than the necessary two-thirds.

In his first term, Wilson had taken a lukewarm attitude toward women’s suffrage. In 1917, suffragists picketed the White House and berated Wilson for paying mere lip service to their cause.

Several arrested suffragists went on a hunger strike. When Wilson learned that they were being force-fed in jail, he finally decided to champion their cause wholeheartedly.

In his Sept. 30 speech, Wilson said, "We have made partners of the women in this war. ... Shall we admit them only to a partnership of suffering and sacrifice and toil and not to a partnership of privilege and right?"

The 1918 midterm elections altered the balance of power on the issue. On May 21, 1919, the House endorsed women's suffrage 304-89. On June 4, the Senate finally followed suit, approving the amendment 56-25 and sending it to the states for ratification.

Resource credited to: http://www.politico.com/story/2007/09/woodrow-wilson-endorses-womens-suffrage-on-sept-30-1918-006071