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Friend ,
Fifty eight years ago today the Voting Rights Act was signed into law. This landmark piece of legislation was a crowning accomplishment of the Civil Rights Movement, and has been critical to protecting Americans’ right to vote in the years since it was enacted.

But there are still very real barriers to voting, and the amount of effort it takes to vote really depends on what state (or even city) you live in.

During COVID, we saw how many states didn’t have simple mail-in voting, a safe and accessible way to vote. Then after the 2020 election, we saw state legislatures across the country propose and pass bills that would make voting more difficult and more complicated.

Right now, there are two things we can do to safeguard voting rights for millions of Americans.



First, we need to restore the Voting Rights Act, which acts as a legal “shield” for voting rights and would help prevent states from enacting restrictive voting laws. But in 2013, the Supreme Court struck down the heart of the VRA – which required cities and states with a history of discrimination to prove that any changes to voting laws were not discriminatory – and since then states across the country have been passing more restrictive voter suppression laws. The legislation to restore this pillar of the VRA has been named the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, and I co-sponsored and voted for it twice in the House.

Second, we need to pass the For the People Act. The For the People Act is the major piece of legislation that enacts election reforms and expands voting rights. It has passed in the House, but it doesn’t have Republican support in the Senate, and unfortunately, the 60-vote filibuster continues to present a barrier to this legislation getting an up-or-down vote in the Senate.

Along with all of this, we need to invest in voter registration and education to make sure all voters have the chance to make their voice heard. This is another place where Michigan is outshining the rest of the country in terms of progress – just this month, Governor Whitmer signed bipartisan legislation expanding voting rights in our state.

Voting rights are fundamental. Without them, our democracy is quite literally at risk. If the Senate was able to pass federal legislation on this 58 years ago, they certainly should be able to vote on it now.

Onward,

Elissa



Elissa Slotkin is running for Senate in Michigan and recently polling shows a statistical dead-heat. Making progress on issues like voting rights will require us to hold our Democratic majority in the Senate and that starts with defending this seat in Michigan.

Will you chip in today to help Elissa defend this seat and our right to vote?


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