Indivisibles,

We're expecting some important votes on the For The People Act today and wanted to send a short note outlining what to expect. Ezra will follow up after the votes with next steps.

Before we start: Our fight to stop state-level Republican voter suppression and pass For the People Act continues -- and we believe that with your ongoing support, we will win.

But that won’t happen today. 

We’ve been talking to our Hill contacts, and we now expect Senator Schumer will schedule three procedural votes on S. 1 in the next several hours, which will fail. That’s obviously not ideal, but these votes are temporary setbacks, not the endgame. 

So the votes. 

1. First will be a second procedural vote on S. 1 -- that's another of the same kind of vote that failed in June. What’s important to know is that on today’s version of the vote, Dems will try and make concessions to some GOP demands. That will get the GOP on the record as not helping to govern even when Dems bend over backwards to get them onboard.
   
   We expect this vote to fail because it can't overcome the filibuster, just as it did in June. The GOP isn't going to play nicely. You, we, and Chuck Schumer all know that. It’s frustrating, but it's OK.
   
   
2. After that first vote fails, we expect Schumer to bring votes on two different provisions of the bill, the DISCLOSE Act (the part dealing with campaign finance reforms and transparency) and the gerrymandering & redistricting compromise. Again, these are compromise positions designed to get the GOP to join -- but again, we are confident given how Republicans always behave that they’ll filibuster anyway. We have every expectation that these votes will also fail. This is also frustrating, but will also be OK.

That’s where the Senate will leave things when they go into recess. That is bad news, for sure, because it means this bill won’t be passed before census data is released on Thursday -- that data is what states use to draw their congressional maps, and as soon as they get it, they can start the redistricting process. But this fight isn’t over. Schumer plans to bring the bill right back up after recess, and while that means we’re likely not to have the fixes in place to impact every state before the 2022 elections, we’ll still have time to impact many states, particularly if the Senate acts fast. 

So here’s what we need from you: 

1. Today, August 10, the coalition Declaration for American Democracy is taking action and is holding nationwide Democracy Can’t Wait rallies to tell our senators that democracy can't wait any longer -- they must pass the For the People Act, and get it done now. If your rally hasn't taken place yet, please plan to attend. 
2. Call your senator and ask them to move S. 1 forward. Even though we expect these votes to fail, it’s important that your senators hear that this is important to you. That helps us to continue to keep up the drumbeat both today and through recess.  
3. If you can (and this is #3 for a reason) chip in $5/month to support Indivisible Project. Monthly gifts help us plan for these long-term fights, and cover everything from newspaper ads to organizing tools to call scripts. 

And again: this isn't the end of the fight. We have a prime opportunity this recess as legislators come home and hold town halls to hear from members of your community! In the upcoming recess, please plan to show up to town halls, make calls, and otherwise make it clear to your senators that you won't accept anything less than a swift, decisive passage of the For the People Act. No excuses.

In solidarity,
Indivisible Team