FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 21, 2022
Contact: Emily Phelps | press@indivisible.org
Washington, DC — Indivisible’s National Advocacy Director Mary Small released the following statement In response to a bipartisan group of Senators’ proposed set of updates to the Electoral Count Act:
“Yesterday, a bipartisan group of Senators proposed a set of badly needed updates to the antiquated Electoral Count Act. The Electoral Count Reform Act would take steps toward stopping rogue governors, state legislatures and members of Congress from ignoring valid election results. Though it’s no substitute for actual voting rights legislation, this bill is an important step toward stopping election subversion.
“As defeated ex-president Donald Trump and his GOP co-conspirators around the country continue to promote baseless conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and erode our democracy, it’s crucial for our members of Congress to close loopholes that Republicans could exploit. We’re encouraged by this progress and Democrats’ determination to combat the crisis of inaction in D.C.
“These Republican senators’ willingness to support basic protections for our elections is welcome, but the timing is suspicious. After 18 months of refusing to support a myriad of proposed reforms, nine GOP senators--- just one short of the ten needed to overcome the filibuster, coincidentally-- released a plan right before a primetime January 6th Committee hearing? That’s either bad luck or awfully convenient.
“We do need real protection against election subversion. If these nine Republicans sincerely understand that, we’ll see them dig up the tenth Republican they need to pass this bill, and then work across the aisle to do more, starting by engaging in earnest with forthcoming legislative recommendations from the January 6th committee. If not--looks like they’re just scared of tonight’s news cycle.
“We’ve told our activists and the public: Rather than being placated by a Senate proposal that’s still short on votes, savvy political watchers will be tuning in to tonight’s hearing. Whatever’s revealed must be very bad for Republicans.”
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ABOUT THE INDIVISIBLE PROJECT
The Indivisible Project (501c4) is a social movement non-profit driven by a vision of a real democracy - of, by, and for the people. Indivisible began in 2016 as a viral guide to resisting Trump’s agenda. Today, the Indivisible movement is a network of thousands of local groups and millions of activists across every state. The Indivisible Project drives campaigns for bold progressive policies, lobbies Congress, and equips activists with tools to build lasting progressive power, everywhere. Together, we fight to defeat the rightwing takeover of American government and build an inclusive democracy.