voting rights

VOTING RIGHTS BILLS HIT ROADBLOCK IN SENATE, WITH DEMOCRACY ON THE LINE

By Elijah McKee

Photo, left by Rebecca Jefferis Williamson:  Voter casts ballot at San Diego Register of Voters

January 26, 2022 (San Diego) — With year one of the Biden Administration completed and the 2022 midterm elections on the horizon, Congress’s pivotal tug-of-war over federal voting rights legislation continues to escalate.

 

In January 19 in the Senate, Republicans blocked the Democrats’ attempt at passing both the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. The legislation — which was also blocked several times in 2021 — sought to strengthen the protections of voters in light of many recent state laws that suppress voting rights. 

 

Such laws have been levied across the nation in the wake of the 2020 Presidential election and the January 6 attack on the Capitol. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) recently warned, “Our voting rights – and our democracy – are on the line.”


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VOTERS’ WATCHDOG: VOTING RIGHTS ADVOCATES ANNOUNCE A SETTLEMENT OF "EXACT MATCH" LAWSUIT

 

By Miriam Raftery

February 11, 2017 (Washington D.C.) — An estimated 42,000 eligible voters, most of them minorities, were denied their right to vote in George due to minor typos and data entry errors. In a landmark settlement for voting rights advocates, the state of Georgia has agreed it will no longer use the “exact match” system. The suit had contended that the system violated voters’ constitutional rights.


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ASSEMBLYWOMAN GONZALEZ, STUDENTS UNVEILS VOTE AT 16 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

 

Legislators, educators, youth rally to support expanded voting rights

Source: News Release

February 12, 2016 (Sacramento) - Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) rallied on the steps of the State Capitol today with lawmakers, educators and young adults to announce the introduction of an amendment to California’s constitution allowing 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote in their local school board and community college district governing board elections.


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OBAMA DELIVERS POWERFUL SPEECH ON VOTING RIGHTS AT 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF SELMA MARCH

 

View video: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/03/08/president-obama-marks-50th-anniversary-marches-selma-montgomery

East County News Service

This weekend marked the 50th anniversary of “bloody Sunday,” when marchers in Selma, Alabama were attacked and beaten back by police as they marched for voting rights.  The incident sparked national outrage and ultimately helped win passage of the Voting Rights Act.  Yet voting rights are once again under assault across the U.S., as bigotry and attempts to suppress African-American votes continue long after that fateful day in Selma.

We still have a long way to go as a nation, as President Barack Obama made clear in an speech delivered to a crowd on the bridge in Selma, Alabama on Sunday. The President celebrated the victories achieved since Selma, also urging that marchers symbolically continue.  calling for  voting rights for all Americans.


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SUPREME COURT STRIKES DOWN HEART OF VOTING RIGHTS ACT, SPARKING NATIONAL OUTCRY

 

 

"Discrimination at the ballot box is intolerable, and we must ensure that minorities don’t have their votes purged, packed, gerrymandered, and redistricted away.” -- Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, commenting on the decision

 

By Miriam Raftery

June 25, 2013 (Washington D.C.) – By a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down a requirement for states and communities with a history of discrimination against minority voters to obtain federal approval before changing their voting laws.  The Court did not find the Voting Rights requirement of preapproval itself unconstitutional, but ruled that Congress must act to assess which areas still have evidence of discrimination.

The action in the Shelby v. Holder case has triggered outraged reactions from civil rights leaders across the nation. 

“Communities of color, and young, women, elderly, and disables voters are at risk,” the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) warns.  The NAACP has launched a petition asking Congress to act to protect voting rights . (Petition: http://www.naacp.org/page/s/vra-no-voting-rights?subsource=strucklb)


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ECM WORLD WATCH: GLOBAL AND NATIONAL NEWS

November13, 2012 --  (San Diego’s East County) – ECM World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflecting all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

WORLD

Read more for excerpts and links to full stories.


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