Calls are growing for Democrats to pass legislation protecting voting rights at a federal level without delay. While conservative Democratic Senators Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia support the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, they have both come out against doing away with the filibuster in order to allow Democrats to pass either bill without a 60-vote majority. Democrats are still hoping they can find a workaround by persuading their colleagues to agree to a talking filibuster or a filibuster exception for the crucial legislation. In related news, family members of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other prominent activists are planning a series of actions across the country around MLK Day in January to increase pressure on Congress and President Biden around voting rights.