Gerrymandering/Redistricting

Senate Republicans used a loophole in the Senate’s rules—the filibuster —to block even holding a debate on the Freedom to Vote Act. It’s the third time they’ve stopped their colleagues from debating voting rights legislation this year. Senators now face a choice: protect the freedom to vote and find a way to send this bill to President Biden’s desk, or let it die due to Republican obstruction and abuse of internal Senate rules.

The 2020 Census demonstrated what most have long known – we are a nation that is growing increasingly diverse. But for too long, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian American/Pacific Islander, and other communities of color driving our growth have been sidelined in our democracy. While it’s more common to hear about voter suppression laws and gerrymandered district maps, one lesser-known evil is prison gerrymandering. Thankfully, there is still time in this redistricting cycle to change this harmful practice in the current redistricting cycle.

Americans overwhelmingly support the Freedom to Vote Act. Senators must chart a path forward to President Biden’s desk in the wake of today’s filibuster. Today’s vote is the third time in recent months that all 50 Senate Democrats have voted to advance major voting rights legislation only to be met with Republican opposition. The Senate loophole long used to stymie civil rights legislation must not be abused again to defend the new Jim Crow laws being passed across the country to make it harder to vote today - particularly in Black and Brown communities.

Seventeen days. That’s all the time and consideration the General Assembly gave to this year’s redistricting process. Not only was this year’s rushed process highly partisan, it was done almost entirely behind closed doors with little input from the voters. Hoosiers deserve better. When it comes to process, transparency, and public participation, this year’s redistricting process made clear that it’s time to give serious consideration to a citizens redistricting commission in 2022.

More than 1,500 small businesses across the country are demanding the immediate passage of the priorities in the Freedom to Vote Act, to ensure a government that reflects voters’ vision to increase local investment, create good jobs, and foster equitable economies. The ranks of small business getting behind the legislation have continued to grow in recent weeks as a series of votes on the legislation are anticipated in the coming weeks. Business Forward and Common Cause have worked with these businesses to advocate in support of the bill — and 1,500 small business leaders have written letters to the editor, met with senators, and signed on to letters in support of protecting the freedom of every American to cast a ballot and curbing the outsized influence of deep-pocketed special interests in Washington (see the letters below). Efforts to enlist more small business in support of the legislation are expected to continue in the weeks ahead.

Some of us believe the filibuster should be eliminated; others think reforms like a return to the "talking filibuster" can work, so long as there is a path to up-or-down votes on important legislation. The Freedom to Vote Act, a compromise measure recently introduced by Sen. Joe Manchin, is a fitting vehicle to usher in a new era of transparency and accountability.