Voting & Elections

Common Cause in Wisconsin has long opposed this cynical, anti-democratic strategy, and we will be in the forefront of resisting upcoming efforts to restrict voting further. Gov. Tony Evers says he will veto any such measures and oppose voter suppression. Yet the governor’s opposition to this looming threat to democracy isn’t enough. The citizens of Wisconsin need to rise up and make it clear to every member of the Wisconsin Legislature that they should be expanding voting opportunities and making it easier for more Wisconsinites to be able to participate in elections. Citizens need to make it clear that any attempt to restrict election participation will not be tolerated and will be resisted to the full extent that is lawfully possible.

Now is the time for political leadership. In the wake of the Jan. 6 armed insurrection attempt to overturn our 2020 presidential election, we should expect our elected leaders to strongly confront the lies, conspiracy theories and white nationalism that have polarized this nation. But it will take more than that. Our democracy was, and continues to be, under attack, and we must immediately fix it. The U.S. House of Representatives will soon be voting on H.R. 1, the For the People Act, the most transformative democracy reform package since the Watergate era. This comprehensive set of democratic reforms and anti-corruption measures will protect and expand the right to vote, reduce the role of big money in politics, end racial and partisan gerrymandering and amplify the voices of hard-working Americans.

Americans expect and deserve a strong inclusive democracy. We commend Leader Schumer, Senator Merkley and Senator Klobuchar for pledging to introduce the For the People Act as the first bill of the new Congress – S.1. The Senate now joins the House in making this bill the top legislative priority.

Sylvia Albert, the director of voting and elections for the liberal advocacy group Common Cause said the filings were so troublesome that she believes there are grounds to disbar the attorneys general who made them. “When you submit something in court, you’re saying: ‘To the best of my knowledge, the information I’ve given you is true and valid,’” she said.

“While neither party will have 60 seats in the Senate any time soon, there are a number of options being considered to get his bill across the finish line,” said Aaron Scherb, director of legislative affairs for the watchdog nonprofit group Common Cause, which supports the bill.

Voting rights groups say the atmosphere in Georgia has been increasingly tense in recent months as they’ve worked to get out the vote. Aunna Dennis, executive director of Common Cause Georgia, has been wary of what she describes as “angry mobs” at the Capitol, explaining that “there has been a hostile presence with the Stop the Steal rallies.” As a Black woman, she feels particularly unsafe around the area which she is used to visiting as she does her election protection work, she adds.