Press Releases

Today, CBC Chairman G. K. Butterfield released the following statement in response to the Alabama decision to close thirty-one satellite driver’s license offices and its immediate impact to predominately African American counties and minority voters around the state.

“We continue to see challenges to voting rights across the country, and Alabama’s decision to close more than thirty driver’s license offices around the state disproportionally impacts African American voters.  The decision is particularly troubling considering that many of the shuttered offices are located in rural areas and counties where more than 75 percent of the registered voters are African American.  The closure of these offices in eight out of the ten counties with the highest numbers of African Americans, blocks residents’ ability to obtain a driver’s license, which is required in order to vote in the state.  Alabama’s harsh voter ID law further restricts the ability of residents to obtain the requisite identification needed not only to vote, but also to drive, get a job, or apply for a passport. 

“Alabama’s decision to close ID offices reminds us that 50 years after the passage of the Voting Rights Act, the fight for equal access to the polls still continues today.  Having a say in our country’s Democratic process still does not exist for all.”  

Protecting voting rights, with a particular focus on eliminating barriers to equal voting rights, is a critical priority of the Congressional Black Caucus.  With the proliferation of state laws restricting access to the ballot box, and in light of the Nation’s troubled history of minority voter disenfranchisement and the recent proliferation of voter ID laws, the Congressional Black Caucus is more engaged than ever in our efforts to ensure voting rights are protected for all eligible citizens. 

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Since its establishment in 1971, Members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) have joined together to empower America’s neglected citizens and address their legislative concerns. For more than 40 years, the CBC has consistently been the voice for people of color and vulnerable communities in Congress and has been committed to utilizing the full Constitutional power and statutory authority of the United States government to ensure that all U.S. citizens have an opportunity to achieve the American Dream. To learn more about the Congressional Black Caucus, visit http://cbc-butterfield.house.gov.

Media inquiries: Candace Randle Person at (202) 593-1331 or Candace.Randle@mail.house.gov