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Washington, DC -- Today, Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton (D-VA) voted to pass H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, to restore critical protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and keep the promise of our democracy for all Americans. Amid the most coordinated state-level effort to restrict the right to vote in generations, H.R. 4 would prevent states and localities with a recent history of voter discrimination from restricting the right to vote by requiring these jurisdictions to obtain federal preclearance before changing their voting laws.

“Every American deserves equal access to the ballot box,” said Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton. “I’m proud to vote to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore critical safeguards against voter discrimination and suppression that were gutted by the Supreme Court’s Shelby County v. Holder decision. At a time when the right to vote is under attack by restrictive voting laws being passed in state legislatures across the country, we need H.R. 4 to fight back and protect the right to vote.”

For decades, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) prevented states and localities from restricting the right to vote. However, in its disastrous Shelby County v. Holder decision in 2013, the Supreme Court gutted the law, invalidating Section 4 and striking down the formula used to determine which jurisdictions are subject to federal oversight. In July 2021, the Court further weakened the law in its decision in Brnovich v. DNC which made it more difficult to challenge discriminatory voting laws under Section 2.

Since 2013, there has been a steady increase in the number of restrictive voting laws that disproportionately suppress turnout among minorities, young adults, and the elderly. Just this year, 18 states have enacted at least 30 laws to restrict access to the vote.

Named for the late Congressman and civil rights icon John Robert Lewis, H.R. 4 restores Section 4 of the VRA by establishing a modern-day formula that requires states and localities with a recent history of voter discrimination to seek approval from the U.S. Department of Justice before making changes to their voting laws. 

For areas to qualify for judicial pre-clearance, they must have the following qualifications:

• States with a history of 15 or more violations at any level in the previous 25 years
• States with a history of 10 or more violations, if one violation occurs at the state level in the previous 25 years
• Subdivisions with 3 or more violations in the subdivision in the previous 25 years

H.R. 4 also restores Section 2 of the VRA. Section 2 was substantially curtailed by the Supreme Court in Brnovich v. DNC in 2021, making it significantly more difficult for parties to challenge voting laws that result in the denial or abridgment of the right to vote on account of race, color, or language-minority status. This bill would clarify Section 2 to make it a more effective tool for challenging racially discriminatory laws by creating tests for assessing vote denial claims (such as voter ID laws) and vote dilution claims (such as redistricting cases) to ensure that plaintiffs have a fair opportunity to challenge already-implemented voting rules that result in discrimination based on race, color, or language-minority status.

The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act also:

• Allows federal courts to immediately halt questionable voting practices until a final ruling is made. This provision recognizes that when voting rights are at stake, prohibiting a discriminatory practice after the election has concluded is too late to truly protect voters' rights.
• Gives the Attorney General authority to request that federal observers be present anywhere in the country where discriminatory voting practices pose a serious threat.
• Increases transparency by requiring reasonable public notice for voting changes.
• Includes a retrogression standard for already-enacted but not-yet-implemented measures.
• Help plaintiffs to seek injunctive relief for voting rights violations in the lead-up to an election. 
• Establishes a grant program for small jurisdictions to help them comply with the bill’s various notice requirements. 

The full text of H.R. 4 can be found here.

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