When the Constitution was ratified in 1788, who was allowed to vote in national elections?

The Constitution established a framework for the federal government and granted states the authority to regulate their own voting laws, which included determining who could vote in national elections. This meant that individual states had the discretion to establish their own criteria for voter eligibility, resulting in a variety of voting laws across the nation.

At the time of ratification, many states imposed restrictions that limited the right to vote based on factors such as property ownership, age, and gender. Consequently, while many states allowed white landowning males to vote, there was no uniform requirement at the federal level, and thus it was left to states to decide their voting regulations. This decentralized approach was a reflection of the founding period's emphasis on state sovereignty and individual state rights in governance matters.

In contrast, the other options suggest qualifications that were not uniformly recognized or defined at the time the Constitution was ratified. Instead, the principle that states had the autonomy to determine voter eligibility captures the essence of voting rights during that period.