Through most of the 20th century, until after passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, another kind of under-representation was enforced in Texas. The Texas legislature passed a poll tax in 1901, which had to be paid by people wanting to register to vote. It was a barrier to voter registration for many minorities and poor whites, as they often had little cash to spend. After this, voter rolls declined dramatically. Another way Texas Democrats kept power was to establish white primaries. In what essentially became a one-party Democratic state after minorities were disenfranchised, Texas said that only whites could vote in primaries - effectively the only competitive races.