Voter Suppression Efforts on Steroids
Issue #576 The Choice, Monday, April 22, 2024
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As we have discussed several times here on We Are Speaking, suppression of voting for people of African descent and other non-white people (and women until 1920) in America has existed during the entire history of this country.
The 15th Amendment, ratified in 1870, gave former slaves the right to vote, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was supposed to ensure that the Southern States complied with the laws that gave everyone the right to vote without restrictions.
Support for the Voting Rights Act has changed significantly over time. Initially, when the act was first passed in 1965, there was widespread bipartisan support for it as a means to address the systemic racism and voter suppression faced by marginalized communities, particularly African Americans in the South. The act was seen as a crucial step towards achieving voting rights for all Americans.
However, in recent years, conservative members of the Republican party have argued that the act is no longer necessary and have sought to weaken its provisions, claiming that it infringes on states' rights and is no longer relevant in today's society.
This shift in support can be seen in the Supreme Court's decision in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013, which struck down key provisions of the Voting Rights Act, including the preclearance requirement that had required certain states with a history of voter suppression to get federal approval before making changes to their voting laws.
Since 2017, when Donald Trump became president only because he won more Electoral College votes, the MAGAs and the Republicans have put their voter suppression efforts on steroids. the Republicans know that they cannot win
They have tried to eliminate ballot drop boxes.
They are purging the voter rolls of Democratic voters, and eliminating voting locations in Democratic districts.
They have tried to eliminate mail-in voting and early voting.
They want to legalize same-day voting only and the counting of votes that are received on election day only.
They have tried to decrease districts where non-whites are in the majority.
They are making it harder for college students to vote.
They are falsely claiming that immigrants (documented or not) are “invading” this country to vote for Democrats.
They are increasing voter ID restrictions.
Nevertheless, Democrats have still won most of the elections since 2018, especially when abortion access is on the ballot. Republicans have won the presidential popular vote only once since 1984, and many of them are leaving Congress.
Unless you live in a strong Blue district, you need to check your voter registration information and be prepared to vote in any way possible in every election from now until November 5, 2024.
Even if you do live in a Blue district, be aware that Trump and the Republicans are planning to send out thousands of “monitors” to intimidate Democratic voters.
It sounds like a cliché, but this really is the most important election in our lifetimes. We must stop Trump from getting back in the White House, and we have to “Vote Blue” all up and down the ballot.
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