The 87th Texas Legislature is now convened in its second special session, and election reform remains at the forefront of state leaders’ agendas. Texas Impact opposes omnibus election reform legislation that has been introduced in the 87th Regular; 1st Called; and now 2nd Called sessions on the grounds that the legislation clearly would infringe on voting rights. During the first special session, Texas Impact spearheaded the Let My People Vote voting rights rally at the Capitol, and we held additional election training on July 31. We continue to hear from congregations and individuals of faith from around Texas about the importance of voting rights and free and fair elections.
While Texans have been focused on potential threats to voting rights at the state level, our national faith partners have continued to express the importance of voting rights and free and fair elections, and to advocate for the passage of federal legislation to reinforce voting rights in the face of attacks in Texas and a number of other states. On August 10, following the passing of bipartisan infrastructure legislation, the Senate immediately turned its attention to voting rights, but then adjourned until September without advancing the legislation. The House is expected to cut its recess short, and return August 23 to take up the infrastructure package, and will possibly introduce the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act as well.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (“VRA”) has been the primary federal backstop against state encroachment on voting rights. The central pillar of the VRA is a prohibition on racial discrimination in elections. Notably, Section 5 of the VRA, also known as “preclearance,” required states and jurisdictions with a proven historical record of discriminatory voting practices to obtain certification from the US Department of Justice before making changes to election procedures, in order to ensure the proposed changes were not discriminatory.
In 2013, the Supreme Court’s Shelby v. Holder (“Shelby”) ruling gutted the VRA’s protections against state laws that discriminate against voters of color. In part, the Supreme Court stated that Congress was using an outdated formula to decide which states and jurisdictions were required to go through the preclearance process. Thus, preclearance cannot be enforced, and certain states have been able to pass laws that disenfranchise and discriminate against voters of color. In the wake of Shelby, the 87th Texas Legislature—like legislatures in several other states—is working to pass election-reform legislation which, if enacted, is widely expected to result in disenfranchisement of voters of color and other vulnerable voters.
Communities of faith have been at the forefront of the fight for voting rights for generations, and continue that work today. Faith leaders have led rallies, marches and meetings with elected representatives. But, the assault on voting rights in states previously covered by preclearance continues. It is clear that federal action is needed.
To help restore and further strengthen the protections provided by the VRA, several pieces of legislation have been introduced and/or discussed by congressional members. The two bills many voters have heard the most about are colloquially known as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (H.R.4/S.4263) and the For the People Act (H.R.1/S.1). The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act is a specific response to the Shelby decision. It includes a new coverage formula that considers discrimination in more modern ways. It sets forth more procedures for states to prove they no longer should be subject to preclearance, and it provides for more transparency in the process.
The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act has not been introduced in the 117th Congress; however, it has been introduced in every Congress since the Shelby ruling in 2013. On Weekly Witness August 9, 2021, Sister Quincy Howard, a government relations advocate for NETWORK and leader of Faithful Democracy, a coalition of religious organizations working to protect American democracy, indicated that she expected the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to be introduced by the 117th Congress sometime in the fall of 2021.
The For the People Act has been introduced in the 117th Congress, and it was passed in the House in March 2021. In comparison to the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, the For the People Act is a much broader piece of legislation that aims to strengthen our democracy by making it easier to vote, end gerrymandering, changing our campaign finance system, etc. The current version of the For the People Act failed to pass due to a filibuster. Our national faith partners have informed us that the Senate could be considering compromised language this week on the For the People Act (S.1).