Which amendment prohibits denying the right to vote based on race?

Which amendment prohibits denying the right to vote based on race?

• A. 24th Amendment
• B. 15th Amendment
• C. 19th Amendment
• D. 26th Amendment

Answer: (B)

Voting rights protections after the Civil War were aimed at ensuring that race could not be used to bar someone from voting. The amendment that explicitly forbids denying the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous servitude was ratified in 1870. It states that the right to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race or color. This makes race-based exclusion unconstitutional and established a federal guarantee for Black suffrage, later reinforced by civil rights enforcement like the Voting Rights Act. By contrast, the other amendments address different voting barriers: one prohibits poll taxes in federal elections, another extends suffrage to women, and another lowers the voting age to 18.

Voting rights protections after the Civil War were aimed at ensuring that race could not be used to bar someone from voting. The amendment that explicitly forbids denying the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous servitude was ratified in 1870. It states that the right to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race or color. This makes race-based exclusion unconstitutional and established a federal guarantee for Black suffrage, later reinforced by civil rights enforcement like the Voting Rights Act. By contrast, the other amendments address different voting barriers: one prohibits poll taxes in federal elections, another extends suffrage to women, and another lowers the voting age to 18.