The doctrine of 'one person, one vote' is associated with which case?

• A. Brown v. Board of Education
• B. Shaw v. Reno
• C. Baker v. Carr
• D. Citizens United v. FEC

Answer: (C)

The main idea being tested is that voting power should be evenly distributed across districts so each vote carries roughly the same weight. The case that most closely embodies and launched this principle is the one that established federal courts’ ability to review redistricting, allowing district lines to be drawn with roughly equal populations under the Equal Protection Clause. That case is Baker v. Carr. By deciding that redistricting disputes are justiciable, it paved the way for the “one person, one vote” standard, which was later reinforced to apply to both houses of state legislatures in Reynolds v. Sims. The other cases address different topics: Brown v. Board of Education deals with school desegregation, Shaw v. Reno concerns racial gerrymandering and its limits, and Citizens United v. FEC centers on campaign finance.