H.R. 4: Restoring key part of Voting Rights Act

The House on Friday voted, 228 for and 187 against, to restore the 1965 Voting Rights Act’s “preclearance” requirements, which were invalidated by the Supreme Court in 2013. Preclearance under Section 5 of the law requires states and localities with histories of systemic voting discrimination to obtain advance approval of proposed changes in voting laws from the Department of Justice (DOJ) or a District of Columbia federal court. The requirement originally applied to Alaska and most or all of eight southern states and numerous jurisdictions elsewhere including ones in the North. The Supreme Court ruled that Section 5 was based on an outdated formula for measuring discriminatory practices. The court invited Congress to restore the section using contemporary evidence of voter repression, which this bill seeks to accomplish. In part, the bill updates the formula for invoking preclearance requirements; requires ample public notice of proposed changes in voting laws; prohibits potentially discriminatory measures from taking effect until lawsuits contesting them have been adjudicated; and expands DOJ powers to send federal election monitors to states and localities. The bill is aimed at practices such as voter ID laws, prohibitions on bilingual ballots, the purging of voter rolls and the scaling back of voting opportunities and polling places. A yes vote was to pass the bill.

Yes: Brian Fitzpatrick, R-1st District; Madeleine Dean, D-4th District; Chrissy Houlahan, D-6th District; Susan Wild, D-7th District

No: Dan Meuser, R-9th District