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A nationwide march in support of Democrat-backed voting rights legislation is coming to Palo Alto’s King Plaza on Saturday, Aug. 28.
National Voter Corps, a local organization formed in 2016 to address issues of voting rights and voter suppression, will sponsor the rally in Palo Alto, joining others that will take place across the country, including in Washington, D.C. The national event, “March On For Voting Rights,” is being organized by March On, a women-led nonprofit that focuses on progressive causes.
Participants are encouraged to bring their own signs. The invitation from National Voter Corps provides examples that echo its cause: “End voter suppression,” “Pass uniform federal election laws SB1 and SB4,” “Every vote counts, every vote counted,” “Universal right to vote by mail,” “Same day registration nationwide,” and “End burdensome voter ID laws.”
The Palo Alto rally will be held 10 a.m. Saturday at King Plaza in front of City Hall. Masks and social distancing are encouraged. Interested participants can RSVP at actionnetwork.org. They can also attend the rally on Zoom (more details on how to attend virtually are listed at the end of this story).
The organized rallies come as Republican state lawmakers have mobilized this past year in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election to place limits on voting. According to the Brennan Center for Justice, between Jan. 1 and July 14, “18 states enacted 30 laws that restrict access to the vote.” Not all laws in each state are alike, the research institute states, but they include some that make it harder to vote by mail or implement more voter ID requirements.
In March, Congress passed a voting rights bill known as the For the People Act, which included far-reaching proposals such as automatic voter registration, campaign finance reforms and an end to gerrymandering. The bill was blocked by Senate Republicans through a filibuster on June 22.
But the voting rights saga doesn’t end there: The House passed another bill on Tuesday that updates the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Originally signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson, the act aimed to prohibit racial discrimination in voting by putting an end to restrictive practices such as literacy tests. The update, also known as H.R. 4, or the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, restores and strengthens parts of the original bill that were weakened over the years by the Supreme Court. This includes reinstating a requirement for certain states with a history of voting rights violations to “pre-clear” any changes to their voting laws with the Department of Justice.
The Supreme Court removed the preclearance requirement in 2013 with its Shelby County v. Holder decision.
With the filibuster still intact, the new bill faces a similar fate as the For the People Act in an evenly divided Senate.
People can also join the rally by Zoom at us02web.zoom.us/j/81273472237 or by dialing 669-900-6833 and using meeting ID 812 7347 2237 and passcode 749295.
