How did the Fourteenth Amendment deal with voting rights?
A) It explicitly granted all black adults the right to vote.
B) It gave Congress the right to reduce an intransigent state's representation.
C) It granted the vote to adult black males in all states.
D) It phased in voting rights for blacks over a five-year period.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in 1868, did not explicitly grant voting rights to anyone. Instead, it included a provision (in Section 2) that allowed Congress to reduce a state's representation in the House of Representatives if the state denied the vote to any of its male inhabitants, except for participation in rebellion or other crime. This was a mechanism to encourage states to extend voting rights, particularly to black males, without directly mandating it.

How Did the Fourteenth Amendment Deal with Voting Rights