Trump says he will pardon women’s rights activist Susan B Anthony

US president announces move to absolve reformer arrested and fined in 1872

US president Donald Trump displays a signed proclamation honouring the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment that granted women the right to vote, at the White House in Washington, DC. Photograph: Anna Moneymaker/The New York Times
US president Donald Trump displays a signed proclamation honouring the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment that granted women the right to vote, at the White House in Washington, DC. Photograph: Anna Moneymaker/The New York Times

US president Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he will posthumously pardon American social reformer and women's rights activist Susan B Anthony, who was arrested and fined in 1872 for voting illegally.

Speaking at a White House event to mark the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the US constitution's 19th amendment, which granted women the right to vote, Mr Trump said: "I will be signing a full and complete pardon of Susan B Anthony. She was never pardoned."

Mr Trump is facing a tough fight for re-election in November and has tried in recent weeks to appeal to women voters, especially those in the suburbs.

He said on Saturday he would consider pardoning Edward Snowden, who in 2013 gave a trove of secret files to news organisations that disclosed vast domestic and international surveillance operations carried out by the US National Security Agency.

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On Monday, the president had hinted that he would pardon a "very, very important" person, but added it would not be Snowden or former national security adviser Michael Flynn.

Last month, Mr Trump used his presidential power to commute the sentence of longtime friend and adviser Roger Stone, who was convicted of lying under oath to politicians investigating Russian interference in the 2016 US election. – Reuters