If signed into law, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s (D-Minn.) new voting rights bill will enact major changes to the voting process, overriding recent updates made by recent election legislation in Texas.
Klobuchar's new bill, titled the Freedom to Vote Act, was written based on a framework of reforms suggested by moderate Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), according to a report by The Hill. It would lower safeguards in the voter registration process, mandate the allowance of same-day voter registration, order a minimum of 15 days of early voting, grant the federal government oversight regarding redistricting and make Election Day a national holiday.
“The freedom to vote is fundamental to all of our freedoms," Klobuchar said in a release. "Following the 2020 elections in which more Americans voted than ever before, we have seen unprecedented attacks on our democracy in states across the country."
The federal legislation would negate Texas Senate Bill 1, which Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law on Sept. 26 after its 80-41 approval in the House and 18-13 approval in the Senate.
The new Texas law will institute voter I.D. requirements for in-person and mail-in voting. It also requires updating of voter rolls for accuracy, ensures registrars fulfill their position by maintaining rolls, bans unsolicited mail-in ballots, combats ballot harvesting and raises criminal penalties for election-related crimes.
"Senate Bill 1 will solidify trust and confidence in the outcome of our elections by making it easier to vote and harder to cheat,” Abbott said in a statement to FOX News.
A July poll from the TPPF and Rasmussen found that more than 80% of Texans support voter I.D. requirements for in-person voting and 67% of Texans support those same protections for mail-in ballots.
“Now that basic election integrity standards will become law in Texas, they want congressional Democrats to nullify and override the votes of Texans who voted to elect a GOP legislature – to pass Texas laws – in the first place,” Election Transparency Initiative National Chairman Ken Cuccinelli said in a press release.
To pass Klobuchar's bill, Democrats would either have to cross party lines to receive a total of 60 votes or convince Manchin to join the widespread Democrat effort to kill the filibuster, according to The Hill.
The Freedom to Vote Act would keep provisions of the For the People Act that establish nationwide standards for ballot access. This came in response to voting restrictions that some Republican-controlled legislatures have put in place around the country since the 2020 elections., according to the Minnesota Post.
