Question

Prior to the Voting Rights Act of 1965:

a. northern blacks had not been allowed to vote in city elections.
b. Lyndon Johnson had not been a strong advocate of civil rights legislation.
c. the Republican Party had been the lone supporter of civil rights.
d. the vast majority of blacks in many Southern states were denied the right to vote.

Answer 1

Before the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the vast majority of blacks in the Southern United States were denied voting rights through literacy tests and poll taxes, despite the constitutional amendments intended to guarantee such rights.

Step-by-step explanation:

Prior to the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the correct answer to the question is that the vast majority of blacks in many Southern states were denied the right to vote. Despite the passage of amendments and civil rights initiatives prior to the 1960s, African Americans in the South were largely disenfranchised through mechanisms such as literacy tests and poll taxes. These discriminatory practices were used to circumvent the constitutional rights granted after the Civil War and solidified by the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920, which gave black women the right to vote along with other women. The Voting Rights Act of 1965, introduced by President Lyndon Johnson and passed by Congress, was a pivotal piece of legislation that prohibited these discriminatory practices and led to a significant increase in voter registration and participation among African Americans.