House Delivers on Restoring the Voting Rights Act; Now Senate Must Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Rafael Medina, [email protected], 202.869.0390

WASHINGTON – Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the passage of H.R. 4, the Voting Rights Advancement Act (VRAA), in the House of Representatives:

“Since the Supreme Court’s 2013 Shelby County v. Holder, discriminatory policies impacting voters have proliferated nationwide.  This record of discrimination has been well documented by Congress over the last several months and shows the need for action. 

“The passage of H.R. 4 in the House of Representatives today brings us one step closer to restoring the Voting Rights Act and undoing the tremendous damage of Shelby. We commend the House for passing this critical legislation and urge Majority Leader McConnell to bring it up for a vote in the Senate. The VRAA is too important – and the right to vote is too fundamental — to end up buried in the McConnell legislative graveyard.”

The Leadership Conference this week sent a letter to the House, signed by 68 public interest organizations, urging passage of H.R. 4.  That letter can be found here.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 220 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.