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John,
When we think of voting rights, we often think of federal legislation such as the Voting Rights Act, or of Supreme Court decisions—like the one this week focused on Alabama—striking down gerrymandered voting maps that disenfranchise Black voters.
But the majority of voting-rights attacks aren’t happening on the federal level. They’re happening in states across the country. And who are funding these attacks? Billionaires—the same oligarchs who are trying to buy our elections.
According to a recent New York Times report:
“Behind the [attacks on voting rights] is a network of billionaire-backed advocacy groups that has formed a new hub of election advocacy within the Republican Party, rallying state activists, drafting model legislation and setting priorities.”
From Ohio to Georgia to Florida and beyond, Republican legislatures are implementing a strategy that they’re calling “radical incrementalism” to pass, piece by piece, restrictions on voting rights: limiting vote by mail; banning ballot drop boxes; placing new restrictions on voter registration groups; and the list goes on.[1]
Take action today: Add your name to demand Republican State Legislatures stop attacking voting rights.
According to Americans for Tax Fairness research, billionaires pumped over $1 billion into the 2022 elections, largely to elect far-right candidates who support their world view of minimal taxes on the rich, and minimal rights for everyone else.[2] This increase in billionaire spending in elections is nearly 75% higher than the previous midterm election and 300 times more than billionaires spent just prior to when the disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision in 2010 opened the floodgates to unlimited spending in our elections.
After this record investment by billionaires failed to create the GOP wave the wealthy and powerful had hoped for, they turned to the states to, as one Republican operative said, “fix the system that gives a Republican candidate a potential chance to win.”[1]
We’re fighting back against billionaires buying elections and attacking voting rights. Add your name today >>
Together, we’re fighting for a democracy where the voices of millions of everyday people are heard over the power and influence of the wealthy few.
Thank you,
David Kass
Executive Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund
[1] “Under the Radar, Right-Wing Push to Tighten Voting Laws Persists,” New York Times, May 8, 2023
[2] “Billionaire spending topped $1 billion for the first time in the 2022 elections,” Americans for Tax Fairness, May 15, 2023
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