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>After winning legislative seats and taking over governor’s mansions, Democrats will try to implement reforms and beat back Republican efforts to restrict voting access.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/democrats-voting-rights-states_n_63cb0781e4b0c2b49ad56964
After a surprisingly successful midterm election in which Democrats increased their power in state governments, party leaders now find themselves in a position to advance or protect one of the party’s top issues: voting rights.
Major voting rights bills are on the move in states like Minnesota, where Democrats won complete control of state government for the first time in five years, and New York, where Democrats held on to their majorities. In Michigan, Democrats will now implement and possibly expand on voting rights reforms enacted by voters after winning full control in the state for the first time in 40 years. And in other states, like Arizona and Wisconsin, Democratic gubernatorial wins will thwart any Republican laws rolling back voter access.
After the 2020 election’s dual crises of pandemic and insurrection, Democrats in several states enacted a series of bills, constitutional amendments and ballot initiatives to expand voting rights and voter access. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the public’s desire for easy access to alternatives to in-person election day voting, while the Republican Party’s lies about that voting access showed the need to shore up systems of democratic elections.
With many reforms already enacted in Maryland, Massachusetts and Michigan, the big action on voting rights will occur in Minnesota, where Democrats hold a one-vote majority in the state senate.
“There is a big opportunity this session to take action on democracy reforms that we haven’t had in the last 40 years,” said Lilly Sasse, campaign director for We Choose Us, a coalition of grassroots, advocacy and union organizations in Minnesota backing democracy reform.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/democrats-voting-rights-states_n_63cb0781e4b0c2b49ad56964
After a surprisingly successful midterm election in which Democrats increased their power in state governments, party leaders now find themselves in a position to advance or protect one of the party’s top issues: voting rights.
Major voting rights bills are on the move in states like Minnesota, where Democrats won complete control of state government for the first time in five years, and New York, where Democrats held on to their majorities. In Michigan, Democrats will now implement and possibly expand on voting rights reforms enacted by voters after winning full control in the state for the first time in 40 years. And in other states, like Arizona and Wisconsin, Democratic gubernatorial wins will thwart any Republican laws rolling back voter access.
After the 2020 election’s dual crises of pandemic and insurrection, Democrats in several states enacted a series of bills, constitutional amendments and ballot initiatives to expand voting rights and voter access. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the public’s desire for easy access to alternatives to in-person election day voting, while the Republican Party’s lies about that voting access showed the need to shore up systems of democratic elections.
With many reforms already enacted in Maryland, Massachusetts and Michigan, the big action on voting rights will occur in Minnesota, where Democrats hold a one-vote majority in the state senate.
“There is a big opportunity this session to take action on democracy reforms that we haven’t had in the last 40 years,” said Lilly Sasse, campaign director for We Choose Us, a coalition of grassroots, advocacy and union organizations in Minnesota backing democracy reform.
