Foreign Service Officer Test (FSOT) Practice Exam

Which amendment prohibits the abridgment of voting rights based on race?

1. A. 13th

2. B. 14th

3. C. 15th

4. D. 16th

The correct answer is: C. 15th

The amendment that prohibits the abridgment of voting rights based on race is indeed the 15th Amendment. Ratified in 1870, this amendment specifically states that the right to vote cannot be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Its primary purpose was to ensure that African American men, in particular, would have the right to vote after the Civil War and the abolition of slavery. In contrast, the 13th Amendment abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, the 14th Amendment addresses citizenship rights and equal protection under the law, and the 16th Amendment established the federal income tax. While all these amendments are significant in the context of American civil rights and governance, the explicit focus on race and voting rights is unique to the 15th Amendment.