Voting & Elections

This country needs to have two or more vibrant political parties contesting elections and trying to win the battle of ideas by persuading voters that their proposals are best. But when one of the major political parties doesn’t really believe in elections and in democracy, then it follows that it can’t possibly win the hearts and minds of citizens at the ballot box because the outcome of free and fair elections doesn’t really matter to them. That sick mindset will eventually destroy that party. If it ceases to believe in elections, then it will cease to be able to win them. The great majority of Wisconsinites and Americans will never adopt that cynical and destructive vision. It’s up to Republicans to dramatically change direction and to again work to strengthen democracy instead of trying to destroy it.

Common Cause is urging every member of the U.S. House of Representatives to vote “yes” on the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 5746, the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act, “to ensure that voters can safely and freely cast their ballots, repair and strengthen the Voting Rights Act, protect against election sabotage, stop partisan and racial gerrymandering, and limit the influence of dark money in politics so that billionaires can’t buy elections.” The letter emphasizes that already this year, 19 states have enacted 34 restrictive voting laws that make it harder for Americans – particularly in Black and Brown communities - to have a say in choosing their elected leaders. The letter also notes that Common Cause plans to key-vote this legislation in our Democracy Scorecard, which we send to our 1.5 million members.   

2022 is likely to be a year full of social media companies making content moderation decisions that politicians don’t like. Elections create an incentive for overheated or misleading claims, and all 435 seats in the House are up for grabs, as well as 34 of the 100 Senate seats. “Campaigns are using election disinformation in really novel ways, and we’re going to see more of that in 2022,” says Jesse Littlewood, vice president for campaigns at the good government group Common Cause. Republicans consistently accuse Twitter and Facebook of abusing their power, but Littlewood and other critics say social media companies allow too much content designed to undermine voters’ faith in the integrity of the electoral system to spread on their platforms.

In the United States, we are stronger when every American votes, when every American has a say in the future of this country. President Biden made very clear today that he knows we are at a pivotal moment in our nation’s history and that a Republican minority in the U.S. Senate must not be allowed to turn back the clock and allow a new generation of Jim Crow laws to take root. He clearly stated that the Senate rules must not tolerated when they strip Americans – particularly Black and Brown Americans - of their fundamental right to vote. Those rules must be changed if they are abused. Simple majorities in state legislatures are deciding who can vote and who cannot while the filibuster has allowed a minority in the Senate to prevent Congress from acting to prevent voter suppression and protect the voting rights of every American.

Today, Common Cause is emphasizing to every U.S. Senator that voting rights protections must remain their priority and that any reforms to how electoral votes for president and vice president are counted are no substitute for the Freedom to Vote Act and the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. The letter to Senators emphasizes that some legislatures across the country are already introducing new bills to make it harder for Americans to have a say in choosing their elected leaders. The new bills come on top of last year’s voter suppression push that saw 19 states enact 34 restrictive voting laws.