The problem:
The 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder swept away key provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. This decision makes it easier for states and localities to revert back to discriminatory practices that restrict the voting rights of Black, Brown, Native, and Asian American people.
The solution:
The Voting Rights Advancement Act (VRAA), which was passed by the U. S. House of Representatives in Dec. 2019, restores and modernizes key provisions of the original Voting Rights Act to prevent voter suppression efforts so that we can build the truly representative 21st century democracy we deserve.
Nonpartisan issue:
Passage of the Voting Rights Act has historically been done with bipartisan support in Congress. The bill was passed with bipartisan support under a Democratic President (Lyndon Johnson) in 1964, and every president who has signed reauthorization of amendments to the VRA has been Republican (Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush). No matter what political party you identify with, you deserve the right to make your voice heard in the ballot box.
Our democracy works best when everyone can fully participate, no matter who they are or their race or color.
In 2016 alone, 14 states imposed new restrictive voting laws for the first time in advance of a presidential election. Those 14 states were: Alabama, Arizona, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
By 2018, six additional states had new restrictive laws in place: Arkansas, Indiana, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Wisconsin.
Federal courts have determined intentional discrimination in at least 10 voting rights decisions since Shelby in 2013.
When our democracy is in peril, so too are our civil rights.
Building a government that is representative of all its people is critical to our ability to solve some of our country’s most pressing challenges to improve conditions for us all.
Americans want a system that works for every voter.
In the last federal election, voters turned out in record numbers to support laws and policies aimed at making voting more accessible and eliminating unnecessary, racist barriers to the ballot box. Congress must deliver at the national level by passing the Voting Rights Advancement Act to ensure that we have the tools we need to address current racial discrimination in voting.
Call to Action
The power to advance this legislation lies in the hands of the U.S. Senate.
We urge every Kentuckian to contact Senators Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul to demand a hearing on the Voting Rights Advancement Act.
Read about the work the LWVKY has done to encourage advocacy on the VRAA and contacting Mitch McConnell to hear this important bill.
Rand Paul
270-782-8303
Twitter: @RandPaul
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Resources on Voter Suppression
Supreme Court 2013 decision
National Public Radio (script and 7-minute audio) on Supreme Court 2013 decision striking down provisions of the original 1965 Voting Rights Act
Recent Voter Suppression Efforts
Brennan Center for Justice Expert Brief: “The New Voter Suppression”
“Voter Suppression by Pandemic,” 4/11/20 interview in The Atlantic with Sherrilyn Ifill, the president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund
More on the VRAA
Human Rights Campaign information on VRAA’s effect on LGBTQ people
ACLU Report: The Case for Restoring and Updating the Voting Rights Act
League members and Friends speak out in support of the VRAA
LWVKY President Fran Wagner’s Op-Ed in the Courier-Journal
Letters to the editor in local newspapers:
o Lexington Herald-Leader
o Kentucky New Era (Hopkinsville)
o Mountain Eagle (Whitesburg)
o State Journal (Frankfort)
This awareness campaign is made possible, in part, by a grant from the League of Women Voters of the U.S.