PRINCE JOINS OTHER MAYORS BACKING BILLS
Gary Mayor Jerome Prince called on every mayor and elected official in the nation to get behind legislation to protect voters’ rights and ensure free and fair elections.
Prince joined mayors from across the nation in signing a letter with his colleagues from the U.S. Conference of Mayors encouraging U.S. Senate Majority Leader
Charles Schumer and U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to support two key voting rights bills — the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom To Vote Act.
Earlier this year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the John Lewis Act, which contains measures to stop voters suppression, set up national standards for voting access in federal elections. That bill is before the Senate and is expected to be voted on Monday. The Freedom To Vote Act, which began in the U.S. Senate, also protects voters’ rights, and it promotes racial justice and equity for all Americans and much more.
“This is an issue that is very dear to me, because so many people of color fought and died to provide the right to vote for every American,” Prince said.
“I’m proud and honored to have signed the letter,” he said.
Prince said Gary has long been on the front lines of protecting voters’ rights. The city made history in 1968 when voters elected Richard G. Hatcher the first African-American to lead a major American city. That commitment to fairness and equity continues today, Prince said.
“Too many of our voters have enough challenges in getting to polls and making their votes heard as it is,” he said. “I’m all for any legislation that preserves a full right to vote and clears the way for the people of Gary to exercise their democratic rights.”
Yu Ouyang, associate professor of political science at Purdue Northwest, said it is an important consideration for the health of the democracy when voting rights for certain groups are not as equal as others. The political dynamic that
currently exists is why this legislation is having difficulty in Congress.
“At a very blunt level, both of these acts are very important and would bring in more people to participate in our political process,” Ouyang said.
However, Republicans are concerned about the Freedom to Vote Act, which addresses questions such as voter registration and mail-in ballots. He said those are valid issues to address. The concern is based on the perception that liberal voters will be helped more by expanded access to voting. The issue of whether or not the legislation is actually good for democracy is being bogged down in the politics of the issues.
“The empirical data does not support that at an aggregate level, but it makes a least a good number of Republicans oppose it,” Ouyang said. “That political dynamic part is hard to overcome.”
Both of the pending bills would have major impacts in opening up participation to people whose participation in the system is marginal at best.
“The more we can encourage people to participate is always good,” Ouyang said.
Legislators will have to address the political concerns in order to move the bill forward. Something people should know is no matter how well-intentioned or good a piece of legislation may be, passing legislation in general is difficult without addressing concerns, he said.
Dan Dernulc, chairman of the Lake County Republican Party, said over the course of history, voting rights and elections have at the core been handled on the state level. States decide how people vote such as requiring identification, which he supports.
“It’s one of the core responsibilities. I believe the States should have that. I’m not in favor of what they are trying to do in Washington,” Dernulc said.
James Wieser, chairman of the Lake County Democratic
Party, said he fears without the passage of voting rights legislation protecting the vote of individual Americans, democracy itself is in danger.
“First of all, I fully endorse and support the action Mayor Prince took together with other mayors. I think this is the most critical issue that faces our government today,” Wieser said.
“There is nothing more important than I used to say enhancing the right to vote. Now we are just protecting the right to vote,” Wieser said.
The right to a fair and honest election, the right for every eligible person to be able to vote is at the core of our democracy, he said.
“The question is, how can you do it when one political party for no justifiable substantial reason opposes it, only because they have to follow the former occupant of the White House and the ‘Big Lie’,” Wieser said.
Over the years he said he has watched the gradual erosion of voting rights, from gerrymandering of districts to Supreme Court decisions reversing aspects of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. He said attacks on voting rights are happening in state legislatures
throughout the country.
“To me it’s absolutely shocking what state legislatures are doing in terms of lining up the ability to change an election when you don’t like the results,” Wieser said, adding once that happens, we will have a government where the minority rules, which is an autocracy.
“There won’t be two parties. There will be a party — those that support the government, and the rest of you are dissidents who will be persecuted and prosecuted like they are in all autocratic governments throughout this world. That’s why it is just so important,” Wieser said.
Vanessa Allen-McCloud, president of the Urban League of Northwest Indiana, said the voting rights legislation should be front and center on the table before the Senate.
“You know, voter suppression has been around since forever,” Allen-McCloud said.
She said while we are in a climate of trying to improve diversity and inclusion, there are still legislators who are looked at to guide democracy implementing laws
that take us back to the Jim Crow era. During that time arbitrary rules like naming all the people on a legislative committee or counting marbles disproportionately impacted people of color.
“I’m really concerned about what’s happening,” Allen-McCloud said, adding the laws passed on the state level are putting more restrictions on the right to vote that continue to disproportionately impact minority groups. Limits to mail-in ballots, locations to drop off ballots and reduced polling places create barriers to voting.
“It’s usually more often than not targeted to the black and minority communities,” she said.
At least 19 states passed 34 laws restricting access to voting in 2021, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. The center also found more than 440 bills with provisions that restrict voting access were introduced in 49 states in the 2021 legislative session.
“How do we come back to a united front where we are working together for the benefit of all people? When will we stop dividing,” Allen-McCloud said.
She one of the only ways
to change things is by getting involve in the community.
“Let’s just take a more proactive approach to stay informed, to stay abreast of what’s happening. Let’s start calling our legislators. Let’s start having more conversation about what’s happening. A lot of times things happen because we are not involved, we are not informed, we are not aware,” Allen-McCloud said.
She supports the passage of the John Lewis bill and called on organizations such as her own and others like the NAACP to remain at the forefront fighting against the disenfranchisement of people.
“We need it now. We’re supposed to be more accepting and understanding of the rights of all people and that is not the case. It’s unfortunate we live in 2021, 2022 and we are still fighting these same fights of discrimination our ancestors fought. We have to stay on the battleground,” Allen-McCloud said.
Even as a super majority is required on the federal level to consider voting rights legislation, state legislatures that are implementing legislation that challenges voting rights by a simple majority.
Wieser described the right to vote as the critical issue of our time, “no ifs, ands or buts about that.”
Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr., a Democrat, said he supports getting rid of the filibuster in order to consider the voting rights legislation pending before the U.S. Senate. He said the filibuster was not included in the Constitution and now because of these manmade rules, nothing can get done.
“I don’t think our forefathers picture America in 2022 paralyzed by tribal politics,” McDermott said. If legislators think the filibuster is so important and want to save it, the should move to add it to the Constitution. If they are not willing to do that, it should just be ended.
“I believe in the fundamental right to vote. This piece of legislation should be passed,” McDermott said, adding the Republican Party across the country is working to make it more difficult to vote.
“The fact they don’t recognize election results, that’s important to me,” McDermott said.
The former candidate for the 1st Congressional seat said he understands firsthand losing hurts after his unsuccessful bid for the seat, but the peaceful transfer of power is one of the cornerstones of our government. McDermott said he does not see any other way to effect change than to eliminate the filibuster for consideration of the voting rights legislation or for good.
“I don’t see any other way,” McDermott said.
He remains concerned about the impact of gerrymandering on the ability to vote and blames both parties for taking advantage when they have the opportunity.
“Gerrymandering is happening,” McDermott said. Republican states are gerrymandering their districts to support their party and Democratic control states are doing the same.
“We shouldn’t be playing games with maps. Politicians shouldn’t be picking their voters,” McDermott said.