Politics

Democrats’ Controversial Voting Overhaul Could Head To House Floor Soon

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The “For The People Act” cleared the House Administration Committee on Tuesday by a 6-3 party-line vote, and lawmakers anticipate it will come to the House floor in a few weeks.

The controversial HR1 bill, described by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as the “Democrat Politician Protection Act” in a Washington Post editorial, contains sweeping changes to election regulatory, financial and administrative structure. With 227 Democratic co-sponsors, the bill is expected to move past the House, according to Politico.

Highlights of the bill’s laundry list of changes include:

• Super PACs and “dark money” groups would have to disclose large donors.
• “Campaign speech” would be re-defined with lower thresholds, expanding the regulatory universe.
• Presidential candidates would be required to disclose 10 years of tax returns.
• Nonpartisan redistricting commissions would be created to end “partisan gerrymandering.”
• National automatic voter registration act would be enacted to expand voting access, so “individuals who have completed felony sentences have their full rights restored, expands voting by mail and early voting and modernizes the U.S. voting system.”
• Strengthen oversight with stricter lobbying registration requirements, especially pertaining to foreign agents by the Foreign Agents Registration Act.
• Create a public holiday for Election Day.

The companion Senate bill, which was being written by Democratic New Mexico Sen. Tom Udall, has not been introduced, according to Vox. If the House succeeds in passing HR1, McConnell bluntly characterized his plans in a Vox article: “That’s not going to go anywhere.”

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