“Rather than making it easier for Texans to vote for elected leaders who will prioritize our health and safety above their political ambitions, Governor Abbott has just attempted to silence voters from being heard in the next election,” said Stephanie Gomez, associate director of Common Cause Texas, one of the organizations suing over the new law.

“We’ve had a very functional system of election administration,” said Common Cause Ohio Executive Director Catherine Turcer, adding, “It is genuinely surprising that after a successful election where more Ohio voters participated than ever before, that any legislator would think about making it harder to vote.” ...

Turcer, of Common Cause Ohio, said voters’ confidence would grow if they understood the election rules already in place.

“The distrust of election officials and election administration has...

"It appears that they would like to take over the county board of elections," Aunna Dennis, the executive director of Common Cause Georgia, said in an interview with Salon, calling the move part of a "coordinated strategy" that represents Republican "opposition to, basically, democracy." Dennis also warned that "whatever happens in Fulton is going to domino across the state" and that if this approach is successful for Republicans, other states with GOP-majority legislatures could soon follow.

"This would become a domino effect...

Jay Young, executive director of Common Cause Illinois, said the maps the Legislature will vote on Tuesday “will not be crafted of public input, but of pure politics.”

“At each opportunity in this redistricting process, it’s as if lawmakers went out of their way to ensure the creation of these maps had as little public input as possible,” Young said.

After next year's congressional elections, when the Democrats' razor-thin majorities in both chambers of Congress will be on the line, it could be harder for Save America to argue that its rallies serve interests other than Trump's, said Paul Ryan, an attorney at Common Cause, a nonpartisan group that advocates for government reform.

"It will be incumbent on the Federal Election Commission to crack down and declare that an illegal use of non-candidate funds for a presidential campaign," Ryan said.

It’s not “particularly sexy,” Sylvia Albert, director of Voting and Elections for Common Cause, said of ballot curing. But when you add it to other legislative changes, “we provide access across the board and give people options,” Albert said.

"Texas Democrats are showing America what it looks like to fight like hell for our voting rights. They are using every tool available because they know there is nothing more important than preserving our democracy so every Texan can have their voice be heard by their government," Common Cause Texas Executive Director Anthony Gutierrez added in a statement.

Gutierrez noted that while the actions of state lawmakers are commendable, other states may not have the same option to push back on their own respective election bills.

“In my view, it’s the least troubling of the money,” said Paul S. Ryan, the vice president of policy and litigation at Common Cause. ‘I am far more concerned seeing people with business before Burr’s committees than I am seeing money from other members of Congress.” ...

“There’s heightened concern of fundraising into a legal expense fund by a member of Congress not running for reelection,” Ryan said. “... The threat for corruption or, at a minimum, the appearance of corruption is greater when it comes to...

“Anyone who wants to go testify, read the bill, they’re going to have 24-36 hours to do it,” said Anthony Gutierrez, executive director of Common Cause Texas, a group working to defeat the legislation. “It definitely feels like a complete subversion of democracy to try and get their voter suppression bill passed.”

In North Carolina, a Democratic governor can successfully veto Republican bills that unnecessarily restrict voting or add partisanship to election supervision. Voting rights groups led by Common Cause have won a landmark court battle to make partisan gerrymandering illegal in North Carolina.

Bob Phillips, executive director of Common Cause North Carolina, said of those who would hinder democracy to hold onto their power, “There’s going to be a ferocious battle if they try anything that is going to damage the integrity of...