WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, Reps. Rick Larsen (WA-02) and Marc Veasey (TX-33) introduced legislation to protect citizens who face disenfranchisement because of restrictive voter identification laws.

The America Votes Act establishes new federal protections for voters arriving at polls to affirm their identity by submitting a sworn, written statement, even if they do not have government-issued identification. Voters who sign a sworn, written statement can vote using a standard – non-provisional ­­– ballot. The legislation is modeled on a successful Washington state law which enables voters to affirm their identity by submitting a similar written statement with a mail-in ballot.

“Congress should be looking for ways to break down barriers in states so all people can fully participate in democracy,” said Larsen, a co-founder of the Congressional Voting Rights Caucus. “The America Votes Act is a straightforward bill that builds on Washington state’s efforts to ensure election integrity while eliminating unnecessary, discriminatory laws that disenfranchise citizens and undermine democracy.”

“Voting should be made easier, not harder amid a global pandemic,” said Veasey, founder and co-chair of the Voting Rights Caucus. “But getting a photo ID in order to vote is far from simple; especially if you’re in one of the 34 states with voter ID laws and are Latino, African American, poor, disabled, or elderly. The wave of discriminatory and restrictive photo voter ID laws implemented after the Shelby decision purposely silenced thousands of American voters, including minority voters across Texas. I’m re-introducing the America Votes Act with Rep. Larsen because more must be done to reverse these unjust laws and ensure that Americans are able to safely and effectively participate in our democracy through voting.” 

Restrictive voter identification laws perpetuate systemic disenfranchisement of certain populations in the United States. February is Black History Month, a reminder of the discriminatory barriers to voting Black Americans have faced since the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution passed in 1870. The Brennan Center estimates 25 percent of Black voting-age citizens do not have a form of government-issued identification, compared to just eight percent of White voting-age citizens.

Restrictive voter identification laws also disenfranchise transgender Americans who might not have identification that correctly recognizes their gender. Of the nearly 900,000 transgender adults eligible to vote in states where elections were not conducted entirely by mail during the 2020 general election, more than 40 percent had no identification documents that reflected their correct name and/or gender.

Original cosponsors of the America Votes Act include Reps. Kim Schrier (WA-08), Bobby Rush (IL-01), Jesús "Chuy" García (IL-04), Sharice Davids (KS-03), Alcee L. Hastings (FL-20), John Sarbanes (MD-03), Salud Carbajal (CA-24), Derek Kilmer (WA-06), Terri Sewell (AL-07), Nanette Diaz Barragán (CA-44), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-At Large), Jim Cooper (TN-05), Barbara Lee (CA13), Gwen Moore (WI-04), Diana DeGette (CO-01), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Mondaire Jones (NY-17), Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30), Jerry McNerney (CA-09), Earl Blumenauer (OR-03), Brendan Boyle (PA-02), Julia Brownley (CA-26), Hank Johnson (GA-04), Jackie Speier (CA-14), Dina Titus (NV-01), Peter Welch (VT-At Large), John Garamendi (CA-03), Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), André Carson (IN-07), Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-03), Joyce Beatty (OH-03), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Darren Soto (FL-09), Jim Himes (CT-04), Marilyn Strickland (WA-10), Adam Smith (WA-09), Betty McCollum (MN-04). Eric Swalwell (CA-15), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Ilhan Omar (MN-04) and Colin Allred (TX-32).

To read the America Votes Act, click here.

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