Delaware’s Senate Majority Leadership and 17 other state legislators have sent a letter to US Senators Carper and Coons, thanking them for their support of the For the People Act and urging them “to do whatever it takes to pass it and get it to President Biden’s desk, even if it means reforming the filibuster.”

“The For the People Act is a transformative solution that will protect our freedom to vote and ensure our voices continue to be heard,” the Delaware legislators’ letter to Senators Carper and Coons said. The bill will limit the influence wealthy donors have over politicians, prevent foreign money from coming into America’s elections, strengthen ethics laws to prevent politicians from enriching themselves, create more transparency and accountability in Washington, and protect voting rights for all eligible citizens.

Despite polling that shows the proposal is supported by 83% of Americans — including almost three-out-of-four Republicans — Republicans in the US Senate blocked debate on the bill, back in June, using a parliamentary maneuver known as the filibuster. 

The legislators’ letter says “The filibuster is ‘a relic of the Jim Crow era’ … and its history has racist derivations. It was frequently used by pro-slavery senators before the Civil War and prevented passage of many civil rights bills, including delaying passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. A minority of U.S. Senators should not be able to filibuster our sacred right to vote.”

According to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the US Senate still has “several serious options for how to reconsider this issue and advance legislation.”

“In Delaware, we have taken numerous steps to protect and expand the ability of our neighbors to vote in our elections,” the legislators’ letter says. “However, we are not immune to the same challenges and obstacles many other states face. We have been unable to pass no-excuse absentee voting due to Republicans who abandoned their initial support in the wake of Trump’s loss. Earlier this year, First State Republicans also sponsored a number of bills similar to the voter suppression measures being filed by their counterparts across our nation.”

“Our country needs national standards to secure the freedom to vote. Passing the For the People Act is critical to making sure we can continue to have our voices heard and votes counted,” the legislators’ letter says. “We greatly appreciate your continued support for the For the People Act, and we urge you to do whatever is necessary to get this bill to President Biden’s desk, with or without the filibuster.”

The letter was signed by:
David P. Sokola, Senate President Pro Tempore
Bryan Townsend, Senate Majority Leader
Elizabeth Lockman, Senate Majority Whip
Sarah McBride, State Senator, 1st District
Laura V. Sturgeon, State Senator, 4th District
Kyle Evans Gay, State Senator, 5th District
Stephanie Hansen, State Senator, 10th District
Marie Pinkney, State Senator, 13th District
Bruce C. Ennis, State Senator, 14th District
Sherry Dorsey Walker, State Representative, 3rd District
Kendra Johnson, State Representative, 5th District
Larry Lambert, State Representative, 7th District
Krista Griffith, State Representative, 12th District
Franklin Cooke, State Representative, 16th District
Melissa Minor-Brown, State Representative, 17th District
David Bentz, State Representative, 18th District
Paul Baumbach, State Representative, 23rd District
John A. Kowalko Jr., State Representative, 25th District
Madinah Wilson-Anton, State Representative, 26th District
Eric Morrison, State Representative, 27th District

Read the full letter here.