House Approves Voting Rights Advancement Act to Restore Tools to Combat Voter Suppression

Press Release

U.S. Representative Peter DeFazio (OR-04) today voted in favor of H.R. 4, the Voting Rights Advancement Act, which passed the House of Representatives on a 228 -- 187 vote. The bill restores the full strength of the Voting Rights Act after the U.S. Supreme Court's Shelby v. Holder decision hollowed the Act, unleashing a flood of voter suppression laws.

"The U.S. Supreme Court's Shelby vs Holder decision, which gutted the Voting Rights Act, greenlighted severe and pervasive voter suppression in several states across the country. Today's legislation will ensure that jurisdictions with a proven record of voter discrimination would once again have to pre-clear changes to election laws or voting regulations with the Department of Justice (DOJ) or a panel of federal judges before implementing them. I believe it is incumbent upon the federal government to make voting as easy for citizens as possible, not harder. This bill protects the right for all American voices to be heard."

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