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The issue of voting rights in the United States has been fought for throughout United States history. Eligibility to vote in the United States is established both in the US Constitution and its amendments, and by state law. In the absence of a specific federal law or constitutional provision, each state is given considerable discretion to establish qualifications for suffrage and candidacy within its own respective jurisdiction; in addition, states and lower level jurisdictions establish election systems, such as at-large or single member district elections for county councils or school boards. Voting rights have also been considered an issue related to election systems, particularly since passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. In 1972, the US Supreme Court ruled that state legislatures had to redistrict every ten years based on census results; at that point, many had not redistricted for decades, leading to a rural bias in many states. In addition, the Supreme Court required that both houses of all state legislatures had to be based on election districts that were relatively equal in population size, under the "one man, one vote" principle. In other cases, particularly for county or municipal elections, at-large voting has been repeatedly challenged when found to dilute the voting power of significant minorities, and preventing them from electing a candidate of their choice - a violation of the Voting Rights Act. In the early 20th century, numerous cities established small commission forms of government in the belief that "better government" could result from the suppression of ward politics. Commissioners were elected by the majority of voters, excluding candidates who could not afford large campaigns or who appealed to a minority. Generally the solution to such violations has been to adopt single-member districts (SMDs) but alternative election systems, such as limited voting or cumulative voting, have also been used since the late 20th century to correct for dilution of voting power and enable minorities to elect candidates of their choice. ==Background== The United States Constitution did not originally define who was eligible to vote, allowing each state to determine who was eligible. In the early history of the U.S., most states allowed only free male adult property owners (of any ethnicity) to vote.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.infoplease.com/timelines/voting.html )〕 Women could vote in New Jersey (provided they could meet the property requirement) and in some local jurisdictions in other northern states. Freed slaves could vote in four states. Initially, men without property and women were largely prohibited from voting. By the time of the U.S. Civil War, most white men were allowed to vote regardless of property ownership. Literacy tests, poll taxes, and religious tests were some of the state and local laws used in various parts of the United States to deny immigrants (including legal ones and newly naturalized citizens), non-white citizens, Native Americans, and any other locally "undesirable" groups from exercising voting rights granted under the constitution.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Voting Guide: How To Cast Your Vote, Participate In Government And Have Your Voice Heard )〕 The Constitution, in Article VI, clause (paragraph) 3, states that "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States". The Constitution leaves the determination of voters' qualifications to be decided by the individual states. Because of state and local discriminatory practices, over time, the federal role in elections has increased, through amendments to the Constitution and enacted legislation (e.g., the Voting Rights Act of 1965).〔("Voting Rights History: Two Centuries of Struggle" ), Veterans of the Southern Freedom Movement〕 At least four of the fifteen post-Civil War constitutional amendments were ratified specifically to extend voting rights to different groups of citizens. These extensions state that voting rights cannot be denied or abridged based on the following: *"Race, color, or previous condition of servitude" - (15th Amendment, 1870) *"On account of sex" - (19th Amendment, 1920) *In Washington, D.C., presidential elections (23rd Amendment, 1961) *(For federal elections) "By reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax" - (24th Amendment, 1964) * *(For state elections) Taxes - (14th Amendment; ''Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections'', (1966)) *"Who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of age" (26th Amendment, 1971). *Requirement that a person reside in a jurisdiction for an extended period of time (14th Amendment; ''Dunn v. Blumstein'', (1972))〔 In addition, the 17th Amendment of 1913 provided for the direct election of United States Senators, increasing the representation of citizens. The US Senators were formerly elected by state legislatures. The "right to vote" is not explicitly stated in the U.S. Constitution except in the above referenced amendments, and only in reference to the fact that the franchise cannot be denied or abridged based solely on the aforementioned qualifications. In other words, the "right to vote" is perhaps better understood, in layman's terms, as only prohibiting certain forms of legal discrimination in establishing qualifications for suffrage. States may deny the "right to vote" for other reasons. For example, many states require eligible citizens to register to vote a set number of days prior to the election in order to vote. More controversial restrictions include those laws that prohibit convicted felons from voting, even those who have served their sentences. Another example, seen in ''Bush v. Gore'', are disputes as to what rules should apply in counting or recounting ballots. As described below, voting rights reforms have significantly expanded access to the ballot for non-Protestants, non-whites, those who lack wealth, women, and those 18–21 years old. A state may choose to fill an office by means other than an election. For example, upon death or resignation of a legislator, the state may allow the affiliated political party to choose a replacement to hold office until the next scheduled election. Such an appointment is often affirmed by the governor.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Voting rights in the United States」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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