Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Call for Restoration of Voting Rights Act
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both D-Ore., said today they have joined Senate colleagues in reintroducing legislation that would update and restore critical safeguards of the original Voting Rights Act of 1965 that federal court rulings have eroded in recent years.
“Six decades after Congress passed the landmark Voting Rights Act, Americans face new barriers blocking their fundamental right to vote,” Wyden said. “Passing voting rights protections has never been more critical, and I am laser focused on blocking voter discrimination in federal, state and local elections. I will battle tooth and nail to ensure past protections in the Voting Rights Act are restored, and to expand access to the ballot box by nationalizing Oregon’s proven system of vote-by-mail.”
“Time and time again, John Lewis put his own life on the line to speak up for every American’s right to vote. To honor him and everyone who has fought for the right to vote, we must pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act,” said Merkley. “We won’t sit idly by as Republicans chip away at the Voting Rights Act, and while so many Americans – particularly minority communities, less affluent Americans, and Tribal members –continue to face voter suppression. Congress must protect the right to vote so everyone has an equal opportunity to participate in our democracy.”
The John R. Lewis Voting Advancement Act would strengthen our democracy by reestablishing preclearance for jurisdictions with a pattern of voting rights violations, protecting minority communities subject to discriminatory voting practices, and defending election workers from threats and intimidation. It is named in honor of voting rights champion and former Georgia Congressman John Lewis. This legislation is especially relevant in Texas where, following historic disapproval of congressional Republicans’ tax bill, Texas state lawmakers are scheming to add five additional Republican districts. The move comes in direct response to Donald Trump’s fears that voters may flip the House in the 2026 midterm.
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s damaging Shelby County decision in 2013—which crippled the federal government’s ability under the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to prevent discriminatory changes to voting laws and procedures—states have unleashed a torrent of voter suppression laws. The Supreme Court’s decision in Brnovich v Democratic National Committee delivered yet another blow to the Voting Rights Act by making it significantly harder for plaintiffs to win lawsuits under the landmark law against discriminatory voting laws or procedures.
The legislation was introduced by U.S. Senators Reverend Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Cory Booker, D-N.J. and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. In addition to Wyden and Merkley, the legislation is cosponsored by the entire Senate Democratic caucus.
The full text of the bill is here.
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