WASHINGTON — On the fifty-fifth anniversary of the passage of the Voting Rights Act, Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Jessica Post released the following statement:
“The Voting Rights Act was one of the most monumental bills ever passed by Congress, protecting millions of Black Americans and other voters of color from racially discriminatory voting practices. For almost fifty years the act worked to ensure Americans weren’t unfairly blocked from the ballot box. But after the Supreme Court gutted the legislation in 2013, it’s been up to the states to protect voters.
“State legislatures overwhelmingly dictate voting rights in their states. We’ve seen blue states restore voting rights to formerly incarcerated individuals, pass automatic voter registration, and further break down persistent barriers to the ballot box. We’ve also seen GOP-controlled legislatures drive a coordinated effort to disenfranchise voters — particularly communities of color — by passing strict voter ID laws, closing polling locations, and enforcing stringent regulations around absentee ballots.
“If you care about voting rights, you have to care about state legislatures. Here at the DLCC, we’re going to fight to elect a sweeping slate of Democratic candidates in November who will put an end to discriminatory voting legislation and make sure every American has access to the ballot box.”
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