Electing to Make Voting Rights a Priority

Problem

Our country has seen voting rights come under attack, especially in ways that target minority communities. In 2021 alone, Florida, Georgia, Texas, and Arizona have created laws to stop voting by-mail and other processes that make voting more accessible and affordable. 

Our Plan

• Make election day a federal holiday, ensuring employees can’t be fired or penalized for missing work to vote.

• Amend voter registration laws:

  • Allow federal same-day voter registration,  registration online or in-person and no-excuse absentee or mail-in ballots.

• Pass an amended H.R. 1, also known as the For The People’s Act. Amendments would include:

  • Stronger regulation of gerrymandering.

    • Districts must be drawn as to not include any unreasonable shapes that would connect geographically distant communities, and districts should not be connected solely through a single road or highway.

    • Districts will be drawn by an independent redistricting commission made of non-partisan and partisan officials.

  • Stronger enforcement on dark money:

    • Constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United.

    • Requiring super PACs and corporate PACs to disclose their donors.

    • Require online platforms and social media sites to publicly disclose who is providing any political advertisements.

    • Crack down on foreign companies donating to super PACs.

• Add a Chair to the Federal Election Commission and overturn its legal provision of an equally divided panel between Democrats and Republicans. Provide further enforcement power to ensure voting machines are secure.

• Raise the campaign contribution limit from $2,800 to $5,000.

• Pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and ensure that it is nationally enforceable.

  • Reinforce the ban on racial gerrymandering.

  • Push for preclearance standards nationally and update them so that they include state legislation going back to at least 2000.

  • Provide more funding to the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights division so that laws that are racially discriminatory can be identified and federally struck down.

• Allow 17-year olds the ability to vote in primaries if they are 18 at the time of the general election.

• Support campaign finance public matching.

This Matters

Voting reform needs to be a national priority. Voting is a critical part of the political process, and no American should be prevented from exercising their civil right to participate in government.