As of October 2021, nineteen Republican-controlled U.S. state legislatures have passed laws that restrict access to voting. Voting rights in the United States have always been contentious, and the recent laws have made it extremely difficult to vote in certain states, particularly for people of color. While the 15th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits denying the right to vote based on race, there have been many attempts throughout American history to stop people of color from voting. The new laws include bans on twenty-four-hour voting, drive-in voting, stricter voter ID rules, and harsher mail-in voting restrictions. The recent efforts by Republicans to restrict voting access are directly linked to the success Democrats had in the 2020 election.

The 2020 election was a two-fold victory for the Democratic Party: it defeated Donald Trump in the Presidential race and managed to secure both houses of Congress for the Democrats. Additionally, many liberal programs were enacted in the election, such as the legalization of marijuana in Arizona, Montana, South Dakota, and Mississippi. However, once Joe Biden was announced as the winner of the Presidential election, Trump began claiming that there had been mass voter fraud across the U.S. and that he had won re-election. These claims were false, but most Republican lawmakers defended Trump’s statements.

Trump’s supporters became so convinced of these false claims that on January 6, 2021, they stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to stop Joe Biden from being confirmed as the next President. Despite the insurrection in Washington, many Republican lawmakers, including the people who were at the Capitol on January 6, were hesitant to take back their false claims of mass voter fraud.

The 2020 election saw the highest voter turnout in over a century, and much of the turnout was driven by people of color. It has been well documented that people of color disproportionately vote for Democrats over Republicans, which was the main driver for why Republican-controlled state legislatures have passed laws to restrict voting rights. According to a spokesperson for the Brennan Center, “What is very clear is that we had a very successful election last year with historic turnout that was certified as one of the safest, most secure elections… we are hearing (about claims of voter fraud) as pretextual motives. … These laws are being enacted in Republican-controlled legislatures, in many cases on purely party-line votes.”

State legislatures across the U.S. must take action to repeal these recently-passed voter restriction laws. In addition, states should halt any efforts to pass further such legislation. Additionally, Congress must pass legislation to protect voting legislation in the United States, such as the For The People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, both of which are before the Senate.

The key tool that Senate Republicans have used to block these acts has been the filibuster, which allows a Senator to debate a bill for as long as they can physically speak if fewer than a two-thirds majority of Senators support a bill. The filibuster has seen various uses throughout U.S. history, most prominently utilized to block key civil rights legislation. To gain significant ground regarding voting rights in the United States, it is necessary to introduce a ban on the filibuster on Senate proceedings, so the Senate can pass these crucial acts. The 2022 midterm elections are only a year away, and all Americans must be allowed fair participation in this democratic process.