
Voting rights advocates are calling on Michigan lawmakers to pass the Voting Rights Act—which would formally codify protections against voting discrimination into state law.
MICHIGAN—Civil rights groups are urging Democratic state lawmakers to use their final weeks in majority control of the state Legislature to pass a package of bills that would protect voters from discrimination, as well as make it easier for Michiganders to exercise their right to vote.
The four-bill package—Senate Bills 401, 402, 403, and 404—has been dubbed the Michigan Voting Rights Act. Together, the bills aim to codify the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 into state law, as well as create new legal protections to prevent voting discrimination based on race.
The state legislation was introduced last year and approved by the state Senate in September, but has yet to advance past the Michigan House.
And with only about one week remaining in this year’s legislative session, voting rights advocates—including officials at the ACLU of Michigan and the Legal Defense Fund—are ramping up the pressure on Democrats to hold a hearing and pass the bills before the holidays.
Voting rights advocates from both groups, as well as the Campaign Legal Center, joined a virtual press conference on Thursday to sound the alarm over the urgency of the legislation.
“There could not be a more important time than right now for states to enact their own voting rights acts,” Aseem Mulji, an attorney for the Campaign Legal Center, told reporters on Thursday. “We can’t rely any longer on federal courts alone to protect voters from racial discrimination, nor can we rely on Congress to fix the problem. … In 39 days, the most anti-democracy administration in American history will take the reins of the federal government.”
Here’s the deal:
The Michigan Voting Rights Act would essentially mirror and expand the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, which advocates contend has been weakened by US Supreme Court decisions and now requires additional, state-level protections to safeguard Michiganders’ right to vote.
“It’s really incumbent upon state governments now to protect their own citizens from racial discrimination in all its forms, including in elections,” Mulji said during this week’s press conference, specifically pointing to the US Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder.
That 5-4 ruling from 2013 essentially gutted Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, clearing the way for individual state legislatures to pass their own array of voter suppression laws—including shortening windows for early voting, enacting strict voter ID laws, and purging voter rolls.
And over the last decade, advocacy groups like the ACLU have said those changes spurred on by the Supreme Court decision have only made it harder for some Americans—particularly Black people, seniors, students, and people with disabilities—to exercise their right to vote.
Loren Khogali, executive director of the ACLU of Michigan, believes stronger, comprehensive legal protections are necessary at the state level to ensure Michiganders’ rights are protected.
“It does more than remove barriers for eligible voters. It also acts as a civil rights firewall, protecting our state from forthcoming attacks on democracy,” Khogali said. “By enacting this legislation, we are not just fixing problems, we’re fortifying the future of our state’s democracy.”
What would change?
Not a whole lot—and that’s the point.
Michigan, under Democratic control for the last two years, has strengthened voting rights—including recent legislation that aims to expand access to early voting. Other recent reforms were enough to have the state billed as a “national model” for strengthening democracy.
Still, voting rights advocates said the new legislation is necessary to protect Michiganders’ rights for the long-term future, particularly as President-elect Donald Trump takes office and newly elected Republican lawmakers take majority control of the Michigan House of Representatives.
“Federal voting rights enforcement is no longer a reliable backstop,” said Michael Pernick, an attorney at the Legal Defense Fund. “States must take action to fill these gaps. The Michigan [Voting Rights Act] would be one of the most significant civil rights laws in Michigan’s history.”
If passed and signed into law, Senate Bills 401–404 would do four things for Michiganders:
- Prohibit any measures to deny, dilute, or suppress Michiganders from voting
- Require local clerks to provide election materials in languages other than English to ensure that language minority groups in their area have an equal opportunity to vote
- Bolster protections for voters with disabilities or who otherwise need help voting
- Prohibit intimidation, coercion, and other deceptive practices that are intended to suppress voting or result in certain classes of people not participating in an election
State officials said voter suppression laws in other states have created significant burdens for eligible voters. Passing clear-cut legislation in Michigan would help ensure that voting rights stay protected, and that voters are never cut out of the Democratic process.
Pernick added: “This lame duck period is the last chance to codify these comprehensive protections before Michigan’s pro-democracy majority splits in January. A vote in the Michigan VRA must happen in the next few days. … This moment is the moment to get this done.”
The federal Voting Rights Act already provides protections for racial, ethnic, and language minority groups who historically—and currently—endure barriers to vote. But advocates said a “relentless assault” on the federal legislation has necessitated another layer of protections.
Critics have reportedly said the legislation is unnecessary and places a financial burden on clerks’ offices over the language requirement. But any extra cost tied to the extra election materials would be fully covered by the Secretary of State’s Office, Pernick added.
“We are in the midst of a multi-year, multi-faceted battle for the future of our democracy,” Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said in a statement last year. “The [Michigan Voting Rights Act] represents a historic pledge to every Michigan citizen that their right to vote is sacred.”
READ MORE: Senate approves Michigan Voting Rights Act along party lines
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