The House last night passed sweeping legislation to protect voting rights, strengthen election security against foreign and domestic interference and overhaul campaign finance laws.
The bill, titled the “For the People Act,” holds the symbolic designation of H.R. 1 and is a centerpiece of House Democrats’ agenda. Key provisions of the bill include expanding automatic voter registration and same-day registration; strengthening voting by mail, early voting and ballot access; combating voter intimidation and suppression; protecting elections from foreign interference; fixing partisan redistricting; and forcing disclosure of “dark money” donations to political groups.
“This reminds me of what it must have felt like at Valley Forge,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), shortly before the vote. “We must win this race, this fight for this bill.”
H.R. 1 passed the House on a party-line 220-210 vote and faces a hard road in the Senate where Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has vowed to block it. McConnell said the bill is “exactly the wrong response” and accused Democrats of using their “temporary power to try to ensure they’ll never have to relinquish it.”
President Joe Biden said he will work with Congress to “refine and advance this important bill. And I look forward to signing it into law after it has passed through the legislative process, so that together we can strengthen and restore American democracy for the next election and all those to come.”
This article was provided to OSAE by ASAE's Power of A and Inroads.