Senators need to pass the Freedom to Vote Act

The For the People Act was the very first bill the Democratic-led Congress submitted after Joe Biden became President. It was passed in the House, but Senate Republicans pressed for “compromises.” The new Senate bill that came out of this is called the Freedom to Vote Act (FTVA). Despite the compromises, it includes much-needed, nation-wide election changes.

The FTVA protects and expands voting rights and election security through automatic, online, and same-day voter registration; vote-by-mail and early voting; limiting voter roll purging and requiring purged voters to be notified within 48 hours; establishing Election Day as a federal holiday; restoring voting rights to felons who have completed their sentence and parole; requiring short wait times at polling places; ending partisan gerrymandering of congressional districts;  requiring transparent, post-election audits with clearly defined rules and procedures; and requiring newer voting machines that provide voter-verified paper records.

The FTVA also reduces the influence of big money in our politics, which is badly needed. It does this by requiring dark money organizations that spend over $10,000 in elections to disclose their donors; upgrading online political spending transparency rules to ensure voters know who is paying for political advertisements; and strengthening oversight rules to ensure those who break our campaign finance laws are held accountable!

These are things we all agree are necessary for a healthy democracy, but a handful of powerful legislators are blocking this bill so they can exploit the loopholes in our laws and maintain their power. That’s not only unfair but it is un-American. We can fix this. Please contact Senators Baldwin and Johnson and tell them to pass the Freedom to Vote Act!