Which voting barrier was prohibited for national elections by the Twenty-Fourth Amendment (1964) and was ruled unconstitutional for all elections in Harper v. Board of Elections (1966)?

Which voting barrier was prohibited for national elections by the Twenty-Fourth Amendment (1964) and was ruled unconstitutional for all elections in Harper v. Board of Elections (1966)?

• A. Poll Tax
• B. Literacy Test
• C. Grandfather Clause
• D. White Primary

Answer: (A)

The key idea here is removing financial barriers to voting. The Twenty-Fourth Amendment makes poll taxes illegal in federal elections, ensuring people aren’t blocked from voting in national contests by having to pay a fee. Harper v. Board of Elections then extended that protection to all elections by ruling that poll taxes violate equal protection, so they can’t be used in state or local elections either. So the barrier at issue is the poll tax. The other barriers listed—literacy tests, grandfather clauses, and white primaries—were addressed by different provisions and cases, but the combination of the Twenty-Fourth Amendment and Harper v. Board of Elections specifically targets poll taxes.

The key idea here is removing financial barriers to voting. The Twenty-Fourth Amendment makes poll taxes illegal in federal elections, ensuring people aren’t blocked from voting in national contests by having to pay a fee. Harper v. Board of Elections then extended that protection to all elections by ruling that poll taxes violate equal protection, so they can’t be used in state or local elections either. So the barrier at issue is the poll tax.

The other barriers listed—literacy tests, grandfather clauses, and white primaries—were addressed by different provisions and cases, but the combination of the Twenty-Fourth Amendment and Harper v. Board of Elections specifically targets poll taxes.