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Congressman Cohen Votes for Passage of Voting Rights Advancement Act

December 6, 2019

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today voted for, and the House passed, the Voting Rights Advancement Act, which restores protections of voting rights gutted by a 2013 Supreme Court decision. As Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Congressman Cohen conducted several hearings on this bill, including one at the University of Memphis School of Law in September. Congressman Cohen spoke in favor of the measure before it passed this morning. See that speech here.

The vote on passage was 228 to 187.

After the vote, Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

"The right to vote is the most fundamental right of citizenship in our democracy. Yet for most of our Nation's history, too many of our citizens, and particularly African Americans, were denied this right, especially in the Deep South. The Supreme Court was wrong to undermine the Voting Rights Act in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013 and Republicans have been wrong in not joining us in reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act. Congress has now responded to ensure that every American has the right to cast a meaningful ballot."