Cite as: 530 U. S. 290 (2000)
Opinion of the Court
217 (2000), the election mechanism established by the District undermines the essential protection of minority viewpoints. Such a system encourages divisiveness along religious lines and threatens the imposition of coercion upon those students not desiring to participate in a religious exercise. Simply by establishing this school-related procedure, which entrusts the inherently nongovernmental subject of religion to a majoritarian vote, a constitutional violation has occurred.24 No further injury is required for the policy to fail a facial challenge.
To properly examine this policy on its face, we "must be deemed aware of the history and context of the community and forum," Pinette, 515 U. S., at 780 (O'Connor, J., concurring in part and concurring in judgment). Our examination of those circumstances above leads to the conclusion that this policy does not provide the District with the constitutional safe harbor it sought. The policy is invalid on its face because it establishes an improper majoritarian election on religion, and unquestionably has the purpose and creates the perception of encouraging the delivery of prayer at a series of important school events.
The judgment of the Court of Appeals is, accordingly, affirmed.
It is so ordered.
24 The Chief Justice contends that we have "misconstrue[d] the nature . . . [of] the policy as being an election on 'prayer' and 'religion,' " post, at 320. We therefore reiterate that the District has stipulated to the facts that the most recent election was held "to determine whether a student would deliver prayer at varsity football games," that the "stu-dents chose to allow a student to say a prayer at football games," and that a second election was then held "to determine which student would deliver the prayer." App. 65-66 (emphases added). Furthermore, the policy was titled "Prayer at Football Games." Id., at 99 (emphasis added). Although the District has since eliminated the word "prayer" from the policy, it apparently viewed that change as sufficiently minor as to make holding a new election unnecessary.
317
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