Voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams gave her blessing to a compromise version of the Democrats voting rights bill, supporting the legislation.
In a statement she shared with The Hill, Abrams said The Freedom To Vote Act “takes the necessary steps to protect our democracy” and “sets national standards for voting access for every eligible American regardless of zip code.”
“I am confident the bill will advance the shared objectives Fair Fight Action, civil rights organizations, allies and activists across the country have worked so hard to achieve,” she said, referencing the voting rights organization she established after her unsuccessful 2018 Democratic campaign for Georgia governor.
The Freedom To Vote Act would bring significant changes to the nation’s elections. Election Day would become a national holiday, and mandatory early voting requirements and automatic voter registration would be implemented.
The bill would also set a national standard for voter identification, allowing voters to use a range of identification cards and documents to votes, which Abrams supported.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) introduced the compromise bill on Tuesday along with Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) and Sens. Tim Kaine
(D-Va.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Angus King (I-Maine), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).The legislation is among a long list of objectives for Democrats this fall. In addition to the Freedom To Vote Act, Democrats have to fund the government, raise the debt ceiling, and approve a defense-spending bill.
The newest version of the voting rights
bill Democrats are trying to pass was crafted by a group of senators, including Manchin, who voiced his opposition to the original bill, the For The People Act.This bill is likely to have the support of all 50 Senate Democrats, and Manchin has already begun conversations with Republicans to get enough GOP votes to break a second filibuster.