''McDaniel v. Paty'', 435 U.S. 618 (1978), was a

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

case that struck down the last remaining state restriction against religious ministers holding elected office.

Background

McDaniel was a Baptist minister from

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020 ...

. He filed as a candidate to be a delegate to the 1977 Tennessee State Constitutional Convention. His opponent successfully challenged his candidacy based on a state law that forbade ordained ministers from elected office.

Decision

In an 8–0 decision, the court ruled that the state law violated both the First and Fourteenth Amendments. A modified version of the statute, prohibiting "ministers of the Gospel" from serving in the Tennessee legislature, remains as Article IX, Section 1. of the

Tennessee State Constitution The Constitution of the State of Tennessee defines the form, structure, activities, character, and fundamental rules (and means for changing them) of the U.S. State of Tennessee. The original constitution of Tennessee came into effect on June 1, ...

. A measure on the November 2022 ballot proposes to remove this restriction. In accordance with state constitutional law, the proposed amendment was submitted to the state legislature in both the 2019–2020 and 2021–2022 sessions. The measure received nearly universal support and was ratified by the voters. Tennessee Constitutional Amendment 4, Remove Religious Minister Disqualification Amendment (2022)

References

External links

* History of Chattanooga, Tennessee United States free exercise of religion case law United States Supreme Court cases United States Supreme Court cases of the Burger Court 1978 in religion 1978 in United States case law {{SCOTUS-stub