U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Representative:
On behalf of the 3 million members of the National Education Association across America, we urge you to vote YES on the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act (H.R. 5746). This legislation will protect our votes, take steps to prevent discrimination against voters of color, stop partisan gerrymandering, and limit the influence of dark money in politics. It is desperately needed to safeguard the integrity of our democracy. Votes on this issue may be included in NEA’s Report Card for the 117th Congress.
NEA members support and instruct students in 14,000 communities across America. They teach students that we all have the right to a say in decisions that affect our neighborhoods and families. They also teach that expanding the right to vote is among the greatest American achievements of the 20th century; it has strengthened our nation, made us the envy of the world, and given us the standing to propagate democracy around the globe. Those are achievements we can be proud of, yet they are at risk.
H.R. 5746 combines provisions from the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, bills that would achieve the most comprehensive voting reform in decades.
The Freedom to Vote Act would represent the most comprehensive voting reform in decades, establishing rules for federal elections, requiring automatic registration of any eligible voter, making voting easier and more accessible, prohibiting harassment and intimidation of election workers, banning partisan gerrymandering, strengthening election cybersecurity, better defending elections from foreign interference, and providing vital funding for elections.
The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would restore long-established federal voting rights protections and prevent new state voter suppression measures—which we have seen in 19 states so far, according to the Brennan Center—from being enacted.
Just as expanding voting rights epitomized our democracy in the last century, the fight against retrenching voting rights will ultimately symbolize our defense of democracy today. We urge you to vote YES on the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act so we all may participate equally in the electoral process and have a voice in our democracy.
Sincerely,
Marc Egan
Director of Government Relations
National Education Association
