Press Releases

On Wednesday, leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), and the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) announced a new House resolution calling for reforms to restore voting rights in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais.

The resolution calls for the House to adopt legislation to restore and strengthen the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and, in the next pro-democracy governing moment, the elimination of the 60-vote threshold in the Senate and enactment of structural change to the Supreme Court.

The resolution also raises the alarm about a years-long campaign by the Supreme Court’s rightwing majority to undermine minority representation nationwide and highlights the threat that the Court’s far-right majority poses to Congressional efforts to advance workers’ rights, curb executive power, and combat corruption.

The resolution is co-led by CPC Chair Greg Casar (TX-35), CBC Chair Yvette Clarke (NY-9), CHC Chair Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), CAPAC Chair Grace Meng (NY-6), and cosponsored by ranking member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Hank Johnson (GA-4).

The resolution is endorsed by: Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), Demand Justice, Democracy for America Advocacy Fund, Empowering Pacific Islander Communities (EPIC), End Citizens United, Everybody Votes Campaign, Free Speech For People, Greenpeace USA, Indivisible, Japanese American Citizens League, Lawyers for the Rule of Law, League of Conservation Voters, MoveOn, National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund, National Organization for Women, NCNW, OCA-Greater Los Angeles Chapter, Organized Power In Numbers, Progressive Caucus Action Fund, Public Citizen, Reproductive Freedom for All, Secure Elections Network, Stand Up America, Take Back the Court Action Fund, TakeItBack.Org, The African American Policy Forum, Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice, and Voto Latino.

A full copy of the resolution can be found here. Members announced the resolution at a press conference that can be found here.

Democrats have proposed a variety of structural changes to the Supreme Court including: establishing a binding code of judicial ethics for Supreme Court Justices, imposing the $50 Congressional gift ban on Supreme Court Justices, reform of the shadow docket and Certiorari process, 18-year term limits for Supreme Court Justices, and expanding the size of the Supreme Court to match the number of federal judicial circuits.

Quote from Rep. Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), Chair, Congressional Black Caucus:

“In the wake of the Callais decision, Black political representation has come under direct assault. Republican-led legislatures are moving to dilute Black voting strength, weaken Black representation, and reverse decades of hard-fought civil rights progress secured through the Voting Rights Act. This moment is about whether every American, regardless of race or ZIP code, has a voice in our democratic process. Democrats believe the right to vote is foundational, and we will continue using every tool available—legislative, political, and moral—to defend voting rights and ensure that all communities have a meaningful voice in the decisions that shape their lives. We will not be deterred, because the promise of American democracy demands that every voice is heard, every vote is counted, and every community is fully represented.”