What was the purpose of a poll tax? (1 point) Responses to prevent African Americans from voting in elections to prevent African Americans from voting in elections to keep Republican governments out of southern states to keep Republican governments out of southern states to ensure that disenfranchised voters can vote in elections to ensure that disenfranchised voters can vote in elections to prevent sharecroppers from leaving their farms with unpaid debts

The purpose of a poll tax was to prevent African Americans from voting in elections and to keep Republican governments out of southern states.

The purpose of a poll tax was primarily to prevent African Americans from voting in elections.

The purpose of a poll tax was to prevent African Americans from voting in elections. To obtain the answer, I can provide some historical context. A poll tax was a fee imposed on individuals who wanted to register to vote. It was predominantly used in the southern states of the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The poll tax was established as part of a wider set of discriminatory laws and practices known as Jim Crow laws, which aimed to enforce racial segregation and deny African Americans their civil rights.

The objective of implementing a poll tax was to disenfranchise African Americans, along with poor white voters, by imposing a financial burden on them. African Americans, who were predominantly poor due to the legacy of slavery and systemic discrimination, often couldn't afford to pay the tax. This effectively prevented them from exercising their right to vote and participating in the political process.

Additionally, it's important to note that, while not one of the options you provided, preventing African Americans from voting in elections was the primary purpose of poll taxes. The other options you listed, such as preventing sharecroppers from leaving their farms with unpaid debts or keeping Republican governments out of southern states, were not the main objectives of the poll tax.