Kate Sheppard

Kate Sheppard was a New Zealand suffragist, social reformer, and writer who led the campaign for women’s voting rights. As a prominent organiser in the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, she coordinated petitions, wrote pamphlets, and lobbied politicians. Her efforts helped secure the Electoral Act of 1893, making New Zealand the first self-governing country where women could vote in parliamentary elections. Sheppard later became the inaugural president of the National Council of Women of New Zealand.