Dear John,

Yesterday, President Trump pledged to eliminate mail-in voting. Efforts to suppress votes are part of a broader anti-democratic agenda to ignore the voices of women, people of color, LGBTQIA+ folks, and low-income voters. We need Congress to act now to protect voting rights.

Here’s some background on why we need this bill:

• While the Voting Rights Act of 1965 established vital anti-discrimination protections for Black and brown voters, a 2013 Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder gutted the law. States with histories of racial discrimination in voting were no longer required to get federal approval for new voting policies, eliminating a critical protection measure against voter suppression.
• One by one, states passed racist voter suppression laws targeting Black and non-English speaking voters. Since 2013, states across the country have passed more than 100 voter restrictions, including voter ID requirements, laws that make voter registration more difficult, and laws that limit voter access by closing polling places, restricting mail voting, and limiting early voting.
• The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would restore the enforcement mechanisms of the VRA and ensure that every voter can cast their ballot.

Our vote is our voice in government. With our vote, we can influence what our taxes fund, the quality of our kids’ education, how much our health care costs, whether we have strong workplace protections, and how our neighbors and communities are treated.

For our democracy to work for all of us, not just the rich and powerful few, we need enforceable protections to guard against unlawful and discriminatory voter suppression.  Tell Congress to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and restore voting protections today.

For justice,

Alison Gill
she/her/hers
Director of Nominations & Democracy
National Women's Law Center