noun

franchise

The legal right to vote in public elections.

The campaign demands an equal franchise for all adult citizens.

Etymology

Old French franchise meant freedom or an exemption granted as a privilege. The political sense specializes that legal entitlement to the right to vote.

More examples

The law extended the franchise.
She studied the struggle for the franchise.
Many residents had been denied the franchise.

Forms

franchise

Similar words

suffrage: Specifically means the right to vote.
vote: Can mean the act or choice rather than the legal right.