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Senate Dems Introduce “Freedom to Vote” Act After Making Concessions on Election Protections

HeadlineSep 15, 2021

A group of Senate Democrats introduced new voting rights legislation Tuesday after reaching a compromise with conservative West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin. The Freedom to Vote Act includes a ban on partisan gerrymandering; universal no-excuse mail-in voting; automatic and Election Day registration; two weeks of early voting; and makes Election Day a holiday. The bill, however, does away with some of the provisions of the sweeping For the People Act and includes the creation of a voter ID requirement, which voting advocates say disproportionately targets low-income and communities of color. But the ID requirement would be far less stringent than those many states are trying to impose. It’s unclear whether Democrats can convince 10 Republicans to vote for the bill, prompting renewed calls to abolish the filibuster.

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