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Pro-democracy reform NOW. Advance the “For the People” Acts

MORRISVILLE, NC (1/21/2021)— Recent attacks on our democracy have made clear: one of the first orders of Congressional business in 2021 must be to pass the 2021 version of H.R.1, the For the People Act.

Called “the most significant democracy reform bill in a generation” when it was first proposed in the House in 2019, this historic legislation is now once again circulating. This time the reforms are running in similar pieces of legislation across BOTH Congressional chambers to eliminate many of the barriers to voting seen in states like North Carolina that target Black, Indigenous, and voters of color.

Democracy NC’s Executive Director Tomas Lopez states this legislation will advance election integrity and security across our nation, and erode big money’s stranglehold on all branches of government.

“With North Carolina’s leaders poised to allow many successful and in some cases life-saving voter protections to expire, institute yet another restrictive and racist voter ID law, and again use partisan methods to redraw our state’s political maps, we’re calling on Congress to finally advance H.R.1, thwart efforts to silence our voices, and act immediately “for the people” of North Carolina and the nation.”

 

Both bills, H.R.1 in the House, and S.R.1 in the Senate, would currently: 

  • expand voter registration and access,
  • make Election Day a federal holiday,
  • limit the practice of purging eligible voters from voting rolls,
  • provide for states to establish independent, nonpartisan redistricting commissions,
  • restore the right to vote to those formerly-incarcerated,
  • promote election security, and importantly
  • support overturning Citizens United.

We must send a strong message to our state’s Congressional delegation that we support voting rights and a strong democracy (and they should too).

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“We’re calling on Congress to finally advance H.R.1, thwart efforts to silence our voices, and act immediately “for the people” of North Carolina and the nation.” –Tomas Lopez