To: President Donald Trump
Enough with the voter suppression
Laura Packard
This campaign has ended.
Make it easier, not harder to vote in America by directing federal agencies to provide voter registration services, promote voter participation and help states improve their election systems. Direct the Department of Justice to investigate and stop voter suppression in the states, and only nominate Supreme Court justices that will support our right to vote.
We have been failed by many of our Governors and State Legislatures, Congress and the Supreme Court, and you are our best hope to protect our voting rights.
Why is this important?
There is an ongoing war on voter rights in our country, and we are losing. In 2016, 17 states will have new voting restrictions in place for the first time in a presidential election. The new laws range from strict photo ID requirements to early voting cutbacks to registration restrictions. Overall, 22 states have new restrictions in effect since the 2010 midterm election. You can see the result in long lines, and people turned away from the polls.
Rather than fighting a battle in the states after the fact, Obama can take action on the federal level to make it easier, not harder to vote. He can sign executive orders to make federal agencies do more for voters, and make the Department of Justice take an active role in stopping the voter suppression. But Obama needs to hear from us on how important voting rights are, and that we demand action now.
References:
https://www.brennancenter.org/voting-restrictions-first-time-2016