news

Today, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) and House Democrats introduced H.R. 14, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act ahead of the 60^thanniversary of Bloody Sunday and the historic Civil Rights March from Selma to Montgomery. This bill would restore and modernize the protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) and prevent states with a history of voter discrimination from implementing new barriers to the ballot box.

“Over a decade ago, the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and severely eliminated voter protections,” said Congresswoman Escobar. “Emboldened by this decision, state legislatures across the country have deliberately restricted voting ever since. That’s why I’m proud to join House Democrats to restore the VRA, preserve our democracy, and ensure our fundamental right to vote is safeguarded.”

On March 7, 1965, in Selma, Alabama, the late Congressman John Lewis and hundreds of Foot Soldiers were viciously attacked by police while peacefully demonstrating in support of the equal right of all Americans to vote. The brutality of Bloody Sunday galvanized the Civil Rights Movement and led to the passage of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA).

For decades, the VRA prevented states with a history of voter discrimination from erecting new barriers to the ballot box, until it was gutted by the Supreme Court in the 2013 Shelby County v. Holder decision. Without its guardrails, state officials have enacted at least 94 restrictive voting laws, many in states with a history of racial voting discrimination. Subsequent Supreme Court decisions have further weakened the VRA, making it more difficult to challenge voter discrimination in court. In 2024 alone, lawmakers in at least 40 states considered at least 317 bills to restrict voting access.

In the decade since the Shelby decision, state legislatures have deliberately erected barriers to the ballot box in what amounts to the most concerted effort to restrict voting access in generations. These new restrictive, discriminatory voting laws would:

• Close polling stations
• Curb early voting and voting by mail
• Impose strict ID requirements
• Limit multi-lingual voting materials
• Make it more difficult to register to vote

The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would restore and modernize the protections of the VRA. It would establish a modern-day framework to determine which states and localities have a recent history of voter discrimination and require those jurisdictions to pre-clear new voting law with the Department of Justice. 

The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act is supported by every House Democrat and by more than 140 organizations across the nation.