Sara S. Spencer v. The Board of Registration; Sarah E. Webster v. The Superintendents of Election
District of Columbia Supreme Court
8 D.C. (1 MacArthur) 169 (1873)
- Written by Jenny Perry, JD
Facts
[Editor’s Note: The excerpt in Gendered Law in American History, Chused, 1st Ed., spells the first plaintiff’s name as Sara S. Spenser, contrary to the full opinion.] The regulations of the governor and judges of the District of Columbia made registration a condition precedent to the right of voting and limited the right of voting to male citizens. Sara Spencer and Sarah Webster (plaintiffs) were refused registration because they were women. They then tendered their ballots at the polls, and their ballots were also rejected. Spencer brought an action for refusal of her registration, and Webster sued for the rejection of her ballot. Spencer and Webster argued that they were denied the elective franchise guaranteed by the first section of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The District of Columbia board of registration and the superintendents of election (defendants) filed a general demurrer.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Cartter, C.J.)
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