US Amendment XV - Voter-race, color, or previous condition of servitude

[DennisLeeWilson]

From: DennisLeeWilson-Ariz-Wyo  (Original Message) Sent: 4/6/2003 7:38 PM
 
AMENDMENT XV

Passed by Congress February 26, 1869. Ratified February 3, 1870.

Section 1.
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude--

Section 2.
The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
 

[DennisLeeWilson]

From: DennisLeeWilson-Ariz-Wyo Sent: 7/4/2003 11:34 PM

Amendments 14, 15, 24 and 26 describe who can vote.

Article IV, Section II mentions privileges of citizenship but there is no mention of the right to vote.

Amendment 14 Section 2 seems to be the first mention of who has a right to vote. Prior to this amendment, the right to vote would have been determined by the individual sovereign States.

These areas would need to be reviewed in order to create a voting body consisting only of property owners.

See Article IV, Section II for additional notes.
Note for future work:
 
Combine/collapse elements of Amendments 13, 14, 15, 24 and 26 into a New Article IV, Section II. Enumerate/define "privileges of Citizenship" and explicitly reserve voting rights to owners of land within the geographical bounds of the sovereign State in which residency and voting will take place. Determine the minimum size of property that will qualify its owner to vote.
 
This is a Constitution of a Republic, not a Democracy. Citizenship alone is not necessarily sufficient qualification for voting--and residency is not necessarily sufficient qualification for citizenship.