Home > Great American Court Cases > Harper v. Virginia State Board of Elections

Legal Citation: 383 U.S. 663 (1966)

Appellant
Anne E. Harper

Appellee
Virginia State Board of Elections

Appellant's Claim
That Virginia's poll tax was a violation of the constitutional guarantee of equal protection of the laws.

Chief Lawyers for Appellant
Allison W. Brown, Jr., Robert L. Segar, and J. A. Jordan, Jr.

Chief Lawyer for Appellee
George D. Gibson

Justices for the Court
William J. Brennan, Jr., Tom C. Clark, William O. Douglas (writing for the Court), Abe Fortas, Earl Warren, Byron R. White

Justices Dissenting
Hugo Lafayette Black, John Marshall Harlan II, Potter Stewart

Place
Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision
24 March 1966

Decision
By a vote of 6-3, the Supreme Court struck down the Virginia poll tax.

Significance
In holding...