■ Sen. Joe Manchin says he won’t vote for a large election overhaul.
West Virginia senator says he will not vote for Democratic bill
WASHINGTON — A moderate Democratic senator says he will not vote for the largest overhaul of U.S. election law in at least a generation, leaving no plausible path forward for legislation that his party and the White House had made one of their highest priorities.
“Voting and election reform that is done in a partisan manner will all but ensure partisan divisions continue to deepen,” Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia wrote in an op-ed for a home-state newspaper, the Charleston Gazette-mail.
He wrote that failure to bring together both parties on voting legislation would “risk further dividing and destroying the republic we swore to protect and defend as elected officials.”
Democrats say the bill would restrict partisan gerrymandering of congressional districts, strike down hurdles to voting, bring greater transparency to campaign finance and provide an antidote to a wave of laws sweeping red states that limit mail ballots and expand voter ID. The bill would require states to offer 15 days of early voting and allow no-excuse mail/absentee balloting, among other provisions. Republicans say the bill takes control of elections from counties and states and puts the federal government in charge, while giving the government new powers to regulate political speech.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has pledged to bring the election bill to a vote the week of June 21, testing where senators stand. But without Manchin’s support, the bill has no chance of advancing. Republicans are united against it.
In appearances on two Sunday news shows, Manchin stressed his reasons for opposing the bill, including his view that it is too broad.
Manchin said lawmakers should instead focus their energies on revitalizing the landmark Voting Rights Act, which was weakened by a Supreme Court decision in 2013. Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska has joined him in calling for that approach.
Manchin reiterated he would not vote to “weaken or eliminate the filibuster,” a route that many Democrats see as the only realistic path forward for their agenda. The filibuster rule requires 60 votes to pass most bills, and the Senate is split 50-50.