What did the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution abolish?

The 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution abolished poll taxes in federal elections. Ratified on January 23, 1964, it prohibited Congress and the states from requiring voters to pay a tax as a condition of voting in federal elections.

Poll taxes were fees imposed on voters, especially in several Southern states. Although they were written as financial requirements rather than explicit racial restrictions, they disproportionately prevented Black Americans and poor citizens from voting. They were one of several barriers used to weaken Black political participation after Reconstruction.

The amendment’s wording addressed federal elections, but the Supreme Court later ruled that state poll taxes were also unconstitutional. In Harper v. Virginia State Board of Elections, decided in 1966, the Court held that wealth or payment of a fee could not be made a condition of voting.

The 24th Amendment is sometimes confused with the 15th Amendment, which prohibited racial discrimination in voting, or the 19th Amendment, which extended voting rights to women. The 24th specifically targeted the financial barrier of poll taxes.