WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) today re-introduced the Voting Access Act to set minimum federal standards for voting access and to address voting discrepancies across the nation that threaten to undermine our democratic principles.

“As a nation that prides itself as the foremost democracy in the world, the right to vote is as crucial as ever to ensuring we live up to our word,” Rep. Grijalva said. “Long before Trump and his administration set out to ensure ‘election integrity’ through a bogus commission Republican legislators have led efforts to make voting more difficult for millions of Americans. The President’s commission is a mere distraction from his own election meddling issues. While widespread voting fraud is a myth, voter disenfranchisement and intimidation are very real issues in our country and are contrary to the principles of our democracy. The events that took place in Arizona’s March 2016 primary election were undemocratic and serve as a prime example of voting inaccessibility mishaps across the country. In order to ensure that incidents like this never happen again, I am re-introducing the Voting Access Act.

“The Voting Access Act ensures individuals won’t wait more than one hour to vote and that they have appropriate access to polls and information so they perform their civic duty. Voting must not be a partisan issue as we all have reason to protect the sanctity of the polling booth. The allocation of resources to ensure that elections are ran in an efficient manner should not be politicized.”

The Voting Access Act, co-sponsored by 38 colleagues, directly responds to the voting issues that states, such as Arizona, recently experienced and ensures that similar mishaps are prevented. The bill requires the Election Assistance Commission to work with state election officials to establish national standards for the location and operation of polling places used in elections. These include:

• A requirement that no individual wait more than 1 hour to cast a ballot;
• Standards for determining the number of polling locations within a given jurisdiction;
• Standards for nondiscriminatory polling place locations, including assurance of accessibility for voters with disabilities and voters using public transportation;
• A minimum threshold for sufficient resources, which includes voting systems, ballots and polling place officials;
• Standards to ensure voters receive timely and accurate voting information, including polling locations;
• Best practices for preventing intimidation or harassment at polling locations.

Rep. Grijalva’s bill authorizes funds needed for states to comply with these standards. Lastly, the bill requires the Election Assistance Commission to provide Congress with a national report on party affiliation misidentification issues and recommendations on how to prevent further occurrences of it.

The Voting Access Act is supported by: ACLU, NALEO Education Fund, Mi Familia Vota, and Common Cause. Please see statements of support here.

Original Co-sponsors: Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Marc Veasey (D-TX), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI), Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), Brian Higgins (D-NY), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Cedric L. Richmond (D-LA), Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Judy Chu (D-CA), Hank Johnson (D-GA), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Kathy Castor (D-FL), Jared Polis (D-CO), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Susan Davis (D-CA), Matt Cartwright (D-PA), Jerry McNerny (D-CA), Kathleen Rice (D-NY), David Cicilline (D-RI), Donald Payne Jr. (D-NJ), John Yarmuth (D-KY), Eric Swalwell (D-CA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), John Garamendi (D-CA), Louise Slaughter (D-NY), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Bill Foster (D-IL), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Anthony Brown (D-MD), Terri Sewell (D-AL), Nydia Velazquez (D-NY).