Hadley v. Junior College District

Hadley v. Junior College District clarified the applicability of the "one man, one vote" rule to the election of local government officials.

The appellants in this case were residents of the Kansas City School District, one of eight separate school districts comprising the Junior College District of Metropolitan Kansas City. Under Missouri law, these school districts may vote by referendum to establish a consolidated junior college district and elect six trustees to manage the affairs of that district. When elections under this law resulted in 50 percent of the trustees being chosen from an area containing about 60 percent of the total school-age population, a group of residents filed suit, claiming that their right to vote was unconstitutionally diluted in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.