What was one of the requirements for voting in Georgia to promote white supremacy?

The requirement to pay poll taxes was historically used as a means to disenfranchise African American voters and uphold white supremacy in Georgia and other Southern states. Poll taxes were fees that individuals had to pay in order to vote, which effectively barred many low-income individuals, particularly African Americans, from participating in elections. This policy took advantage of economic disparities, ensuring that only those who could afford to pay the tax, often white citizens, had access to the ballot box.

This tactic was part of a broader system of Jim Crow laws designed to maintain racial segregation and limit the political power of black citizens following the Reconstruction era. The use of poll taxes was ultimately declared unconstitutional by the 24th Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1964 for federal elections and was further limited by the Supreme Court in 1966 for state elections, recognizing it as a violation of the equal protection clause.