Plus, dispatches from Virginia and California



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Hi Friend,



As members of an effort working to put voters first, we recognize how critical
it is to reflect on our nation’s history and learn from previous movements for
civil rights and voters’ rights. In this spirit, we held our mid-year retreat
in Birmingham, Alabama last week — one of the centers of the Civil Rights
Movement. We visited the hallowed halls of theBethel Baptist Church
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Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth kick-started the fight for racial equality in 1956.
While sitting in the original wooden pews where Civil Rights leaders once sat
during the church’s famous Monday Night Meetings, we listened to choir members
sing hymns from the height of the Movement and share their stories.



Listening to the voices of these men and women was profound, particularly in a
place so resonant with Black Americans' nonviolent struggle for their rightful
place in our democracy. Reflecting on this experience as a team reminded us
that this is why we do what we do. It fuels our resolve to continue putting
voters first and reaffirm our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in
the work.






The Voting Rights Act survives (for now)
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The work of Rev. Shuttlesworth, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the Civil
Rights Movement as a whole helped lead to two landmark pieces of federal
legislation: the 1964 Civil Rights Act — which outlawed discrimination based on
race — and the 1965 Voting Rights Act — which outlawed racial discrimination in
voting.



But that’s not where the story ends. Since the inception of the Voting Rights
Act, its opponents have been working to undermine it. Those efforts culminated
in a2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling
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that reduced Congress’ power to prevent states with a history of discrimination
from enacting restrictive voting laws. In the aftermath of this decision, we’ve
seen a surge of state legislatures tightening voting access.



Just last year, another case appeared in front of the Supreme Court that many
feared would further weaken the Voting Rights Act. Instead, justices ruled
earlier this month that Alabama’s congressional maps were illegal because they
diluted the power of Black voters. A temporary win, yes, but a far cry from
ensuring equal representation.


Alabama, among many other states, still grapples with the Primary Problem
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of Alabama’s congressional districts were noncompetitive in 2022, with no
competition in the dominant party’s primary for five of these districts.This
means that a mere 5 percentage of the voting-age population effectively elected
the state’s entire U.S. House delegation. That’s why tackling the Primary
Problem is our core issue at Unite America — to make sure every voter has equal
voice and representation.




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Virginia holds primary under new redistricting maps
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Did you know that Tuesday was Primary Election Day in Virginia? It’s only one
of four states (including Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey) that is holding
legislative elections in the 2023 “off year”. At Unite America, we’re paying
extra attention to Virginia because it’s a state that has been a leader on our
priority election reforms (see ourState of Reform
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more).



Most notably, Virginia is tackling the Primary Problem by using an independent
redistricting commission to draw voting maps. Tuesday was the first election in
Virginia history under those fairer maps. With fairer state legislative
districts, Virgina’s general elections in November will be more competitive,
incentivizing candidates to appeal to voters beyond just their partisan base.
Ultimately, fair and competitive districts will lead to a state government in
Virginia that better reflects the will of all Virginia voters, and is better
equipped to tackle the commonwealth’s biggest problems.


Elsewhere, Arlington County, Virginia
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became the first county in state history to hold a publicly-funded ranked
choice voting election for its Democratic primary for County Board. This
instant runoff system, which the Virginia Republican Party also used to
nominate Gov. Glenn Youngkin, is another tool to ensure that election winners
secure a majority to win office.




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California’s 2024 Top-Two Senate race is wide open
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The race for retiring Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s U.S. Senate seat is on, with at
least three prominent Democrats in the race.Latest polling
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shows a wide open race, with no candidate above 15% and a healthy plurality
(47%) still undecided. A recentPolitico headline
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even said “this race could get weird.”



But that won’t be on account of the state’s election system. That’s because,
as you’ve heard here before, California uses a top-two nonpartisan primary,
where all eligible voters get to participate and the two leading candidates
advance to the general election, regardless of party. Even if the two
candidates who make the general election are both Democrats, it’s not just
Democrats who get to have a say in who represents them in Washington, D.C.
That’s a fair process to the more than 11.6 million independents, Republicans,
and third-party voters in California — who, in a closed primary state, would
have effectively no voice in their election process. That they do is a good
thing for democracy.


Check out this great write-up
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inIndependent Voter News about our recent report
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on California’s top-two system for more.
  

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Finally, as you may have noticed, we didn’t send a Three Things last week. In
part because of your feedback, we’ll be sending this newsletter biweekly going
forward. And in the spirit of making sure we’re giving you the most relevant
and interesting content on these issues, we’re issuing a mid-year survey next
week to keep the conversation going. Stay tuned for a chance to share your
thoughts!


Regards,



Ross
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Ross Sherman
Press Director, Unite America

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