Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02, today commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act by calling for stronger laws to protect voting rights and encourage people to participate in our democracy.

The Voting Rights Act (VRA) was enacted on August 6, 1965, to prohibit racial discrimination in voting. In 2013, the Supreme Court struck down the section of the VRA that required jurisdictions with a history of discrimination against minority voters to clear election changes with the federal government. Larsen has introduced and cosponsored bills to restore voting rights for all eligible citizens.

“The Voting Rights Act has broken down barriers for millions of people in our country to more fully participate in our democracy. But the Supreme Court decision two years ago cut deeply into the core of the VRA, allowing partisan state legislatures to pass voting laws that are disenfranchising citizens and undermining our democracy.

“Laws requiring voters to show some kind of identification at the polls are in place in about two-thirds of states. These laws disproportionately affect minorities, people with disabilities, students, older Americans, transgendered individuals, and others who may not drive, or who cannot afford IDs or to leave work to get them.

“States also are curtailing early voting, providing people with fewer opportunities to cast their ballots.

“Voting is a fundamental right that must not be abridged. The fact that so many people face barriers to casting their ballot is destructive to our democracy. We should be ashamed that our country is putting up barriers to the vote rather than breaking them down.

“My goal is to make it easier for people to cast their vote and engage in our democracy. The America Votes Act is a straightforward bill to fight voter identification laws by allowing voters to sign a sworn written statement attesting to their identity if they do not have the identification required at their polling place. And I am cosponsoring the Voter Empowerment Act, which is comprehensive legislation to update and improve our country’s voting system.

“Congress must seize the opportunity today to make sure that our country’s voting rights legacy 50 years from now empowers all citizens with their Constitutional right to vote,” Larsen said.

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