Roudebush v. Hartke
405 U.S. 15 · Decided February 23, 1972 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Roudebush v. Hartke was decided on February 23, 1972 by a vote of 5–2. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Potter Stewart wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Voting” in the Civil Rights area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 405 U.S. 15 · 92 S. Ct. 804 · 31 L. Ed. 2d 1 · 1972 U.S. LEXIS 89
- Docket number
- 70-66
- Decided
- February 23, 1972
- Argued
- December 13, 1971
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–2
- Majority opinion
- Potter Stewart
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- Voting
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Legal provision
- Article I, Section 5, Paragraph 1 (congressional qualifications)
- Type of law
- Constitution
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Dissent | |
| Justice Potter Stewart | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority |
Did not participate: Lewis F. Powell Jr., William H. Rehnquist.
Full case caption
Roudebush v. Hartke et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1971-054, docket 1971-054-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Voting”
- Gordon v. Lance
- Goosby v. Osser
- Oregon v. MitchellLaw held unconstitutional
- City of Phoenix v. KolodziejskiLaw held unconstitutional
- Evans v. Cornman
- O'Brien v. SkinnerLaw held unconstitutional
Same Term, same area (Civil Rights)
- Engelman v. Amos
- Doherty v. United States
- Schreiner v. United States
- Reed v. ReedLaw held unconstitutional
- Richardson v. Belcher
- Mayer v. City of Chicago
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error