Election Reform at the Top of Civil Rights Agenda

Media 02.25,02


ELECTION REFORM AT THE TOP OF CIVIL RIGHTS’ AGENDA
Senate continues debate on Dodd-McConnell Bill,
Civil rights coalition seeks adoption of important amendments

News Conference Call: Monday, February 25, 1:00 P.M. (EST)

(Washington, DC) In a push for genuine election reform, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights is supporting an election reform package that the Senate will continue debating next week. LCCR, the nation’s oldest, largest and most diverse civil and human rights coalition, will share its views about the Dodd-McConnell election reform bill in a national news conference call on Monday, February 25, 1:00 P.M. Eastern Standard Time.

“Election reform is greatly needed and long overdue,” asserted LCCR executive director Wade Henderson. “The Leadership Conference seeks enactment of meaningful election reforms that lead to a system that is free, fair and open to all citizens who are eligible to vote.”

Joining Henderson on the news conference call will be:


  • Lloyd Leonard, Director of Advocacy and Lobbying, League of Women Voters

  • Marisa Demeo, Regional Counsel, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.

  • Jim Dickson, Vice President for Government Affairs, American Association of People with Disabilities 202/262-8240

  • Hilary Shelton, Director, NAACP Washington Bureau


Additional representatives of national civil rights groups will be available to respond during the question and answer portion of the news conference. Included among the participating organizations are: AFL-CIO, AARP, American Civil Liberties Union, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, National Council of LaRaza, Paralyzed Veterans of America, People for the American Way, Public Citizen, United Cerebral Palsy, United Methodist Church, and U.S. Public Interest Research Group.

To participate in the news conference, reporters are invited to call: 1-800-982-3472. The news conference call will be moderated by Wade Henderson. To review the Leadership Conference’s online election reform press kit, please visit www.civilrights.org. For more information about the news conference, contact Nathea Lee at 202-833-9771.