Pelosi Statement on Supreme Court Decision Attacking Voting Rights

Contact: Ashley Etienne/Henry Connelly, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. – Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi issued this statement after the Supreme Court handed down a dangerous, wrongly-decided decision in Husted v. APRI, upholding Ohio's voter registration purge policy:

"Today's decision marks a grave step backward in our nation's progress to advance a future in which every person can enjoy their full, equal right to be heard at the ballot box. This wrongly-decided decision paves the way to mass disenfranchisement in Ohio and around the country, disproportionately impacting communities of color and working families who already face suppression of their voices.

"This case is the latest in a long string of Republican attacks on civil and voting rights. From day one of this Administration, Republicans have waged a nationwide voter suppression campaign and created pernicious new barriers to the ballot box that threaten the rights of working families and communities of color. These cruel attacks on the sacred right to vote undermine the very foundation of our freedom, and assault a key pillar of our democracy.

"Democrats will never stop fighting to defend every American's right to be heard at the ballot box. The Republican Congress must immediately bring up for a vote on the Floor the Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore full protections for voters in states with a recent history of discrimination, and the Voter Empowerment Act to expand access to the ballot box and ensure that every vote is counted as cast."

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