Senate Focuses on Safeguarding Democracy with For the People Act

Statement of Common Cause President Karen Hobert Flynn

All Americans deserve to have their voices heard and votes counted, regardless of the size of their wallets or the color of their skin. However, for far too long, special interests, the ultra-wealthy, and corporate lobbyists have had a megaphone, and vote suppressors’ continued efforts to silence largely Black and Brown communities have left many Americans feeling voiceless. The For the People Act would knock down barriers that prevent equal participation in our democracy. We commend Majority Leader Schumer, Senator Merkley, Senator Klobuchar, and their colleagues for championing the For the People Act and designating it as S. 1. We look forward to overcoming Senator McConnell’s continued blockade and getting the For the People Act across the finish line to President Biden’s desk.

 

As Republican state legislators have introduced more than 250 bills to create barriers to voting and begin sending some of them to governors’ desks, the For the People Act is needed to protect and strengthen our freedom to vote by setting fair, uniform election standards in every zip code. The Senate joins the House of Representatives, which passed H.R. 1 on March 3^rd, in making this bill to safeguard our democracy a top legislative priority. 

 

Americans across the country have been calling for and passing these same reforms at the state and local level and proving that they work and work well. Now it’s time for Congress to pass similar reforms in the For the People Act to help give every American a voice in our democracy because it makes us stronger as a nation. Together with the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, Congress has the opportunity to pass transformative legislation this year that will mark enormous steps forward to an inclusive democracy.

 

Common Cause wholeheartedly supports these long-overdue legislative reforms to buttress our democracy, and we will continue to mobilize our 1.5 million supporters to contact their Members of Congress to make the “For the People Act” the law of the land.