Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) voted for H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.  This legislation restores the full protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and restores federal oversight for states with a recent history of voter discrimination.  Congresswoman Fletcher is an original co-sponsor of this legislation, which passed the House of Representatives, 219-212. 

“Voting is the very foundation of our democracy.  It is the act from which everything else flows.  We must ensure that all eligible American voters have the ability to have their voices heard at the ballot box.  Unfortunately, we have seen an increasing assault on the ability to exercise this right—this responsibility of citizenship—in Texas and across the country,” said Congresswoman Fletcher.  “For these reasons, I worked with my colleagues from Texas and across the country to introduce the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act as an original co-sponsor, and why I proudly voted for it today.  Congress has the responsibility to protect voters’ access to the ballot box, and the swift passage of the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act is vital to fulfilling that responsibility.” 

The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act protects voters from discrimination by restoring and strengthening the protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) that have been struck down by the Supreme Court.  Responding to the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder, this legislation prohibits states and localities with a recent history of voter discrimination from restricting the right to vote by including an updated formula for determining which states and localities are subject to federal oversight.  It also amends Section 2 of the VRA to eliminate the heightened standard for challenging voter discrimination that the Supreme Court created in its recent decision in Brnovich v. DNC.