The Supreme Court, New Polling, And The Coalitions Fighting to Save Democracy
Dispatches on the For The People Act (Edition #20)
This week the Senate is in recess, but the fight to protect our democracy doesn’t get a summer vacation. I have plenty of important updates — and if the past few months have taught us anything, we will have more next week, too — so don’t forget to subscribe!
This week, we will delve into new polling, filibuster news, and information about coalitions. But first, let’s talk about the Supreme Court.
Yesterday, the Supreme Court issued two rulings that severely undermined our democracy. In Brnovich v. DNC, the Court kneecapped Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Simply put, it will now be significantly harder to legally challenge discriminatory voting laws. In Americans for Prosperity v. Bonta, the Court struck down a California disclosure law, and by doing so, likely opened the door to gutting campaign finance disclosure laws across the country.
As law professor Rick Hasen writes, “If you put the Brnovich and Americans for Prosperity cases together, the court is making it easier for states to pass repressive voting laws and easier for undisclosed donors and big money to influence election outcomes.”
It goes without saying that these egregious decisions make it all the more imperative to pass the For The People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
In better news: We partnered with Data For Progress to poll the For The People Act. We found that, despite months of GOP attacks and misinformation, the For The People Act is very popular. Here are a few takeaways:
62 percent of likely voters say they support the For the People Act, including 85 percent of Democrats and 60 percent of Independents. Only 25% oppose.
These results mirror those from April’s Data for Progress and Equal Citizens polling, which also found 62 percent of likely voters support the For the People Act.
57 percent of likely voters say they support the bill’s small donor matching program, including 81 percent of Democrats and 49 percent of Independents. Only 29% oppose.
This support again mimics previous Data for Progress and Equal Citizens polling from April.
You can learn more about the results from our poll here.
Finally, a positive development in the fight to reform the filibuster: Earlier this week, Senator Tom Carper (D-DE) expressed his openness to reform the filibuster. Previously, he said he opposed reform. Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) is now the only Democratic Senator who opposes any changes to the filibuster.
Check out the current state of the fight for filibuster reform with our updated tracker. And check out last week’s Substack to learn more about the options for filibuster reform here.
The Coalitions We Partner With:
I’ve written a lot about what Equal Citizens has been doing to advance the For The People Act. But we are also a part of two important coalitions — Declaration For American Democracy and Fix Our Senate — that are collectively doing amazing work.
Declaration For American Democracy (DFAD) is a coalition of over 200 organizations dedicated to advancing the For The People Act, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and D.C. Statehood.
Fix Our Senate is a collection of over 70 organizations fighting to eliminate the filibuster.
These two coalitions boast diverse organizational membership, ranging from groups that focus on gun safety to those that seek to solve the climate crisis to others primarily focused on racial justice. Coalitional work is essential if we are going to win the For The People Act, and we are thrilled to be members of both coalitions.
Check out their websites and consider promoting their materials.
Deadline For Democracy!
Time is running short to pass the For The People Act, and we need more grassroots pressure on senators. In light of this, DFAD has partnered with Indivisible to organize the Deadline For Democracy, a multi-week campaign targeting senators during their recess. There have been over 300 events scheduled and more than a hundred have already occurred.
The goal for these events is to build so much pressure that when the Senate returns from their summer recess they have no choice but to reform or eliminate the filibuster to pass the For The People Act.
Check to see if there are any events near you and get involved. You can also organize your own event if there are none close by. Sign up for events here and share the link with friends, family, and whoever else might be interested!
Don’t forget to subscribe to get more updates about the For The People Act and exciting future events.
In the News:
After Thursday’s Supreme Court rulings, the Atlantic’s Ronald Brownstein argues that the only option to protect the right to vote is to reform the filibuster and pass the For The People Act. The Supreme Court will not stop anti-voter laws. The Senate Democrats must use their majority to protect and strengthen America’s fragile democracy.
Jonathan Capehart of the Washington Post writes that Democrats should not be afraid to eliminate the filibuster to pass the For The People Act. As has already been done for court nominees, Capehart believes the filibuster must be removed for legislation like the For The People Act.
The New York Times’ Ezra Klein explores the current state of American democracy with political scientists from other countries. He warns of the creation of a two-tier democratic system without new federal voting legislation.
Redistricting expert David Daley makes the case that Republicans can win back the House just by gerrymandering alone. Daley warns that this “is how a democracy withers and disappears — slowly, legally, and in plain sight.” Notably, if passed in time, the For The People Act would put a stop to this undemocratic partisan gerrymandering.
Don’t forget to keep your friends, family, and colleagues in the loop by sharing this Substack with them.
Social Media Roundup:
Let’s be frank: there are A LOT of tweets, posts, and general conversation about the For The People Act. In this section, we give you an overview of the tweets and media you really need to see.
More Ways to Help!
We are entering possibly one of the most critical moments for American democracy since the Voting Rights Act of 1965. We need all the help we can get to push the For The People Act over the finish line! Here are more ways to join the fight to protect American democracy:
Call your senators and tell them that you support reforming the filibuster to pass H.R. 1. You can find your senators’ phone numbers, as well as where they stand on the filibuster, using our handy filibuster tracker!
Common Cause, Center for Common Ground, RepresentUs, and End Citizens United are organizing regular phone banks in support of the For the People Act. This is a great opportunity to spread the word about H.R. 1 and help constituents contact their Senators in support of the bill. Check them out here, here, here, and here.
Stacey Abrams’ Fair Fight Action is hosting Hot Call Summer. Plug into their actions here.
Common Cause also hosts regular text banks on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Sign up to join them here.
Write a letter to the editor in your local paper sharing your support of H.R. 1 and urging your Senators to pass it. Not sure how to write a letter to the editor? Reach out to us at info@equalcitizens.us and we can help!
Share our newsletter, our podcast, the articles included above, and the resources on H.R. 1 below on social media and tell your friends why you support #ForThePeopleAct
Extra, Extra:
If, after reading our newsletter, you still want to know more about the For The People Act or Equal Citizens you can find more information here! If you have questions about H.R. 1 you want us to answer in our Substack, tweet at us with #HR1Substack! Also, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook for more updates throughout the week.
Relevant Resources:
Here are a few resources on the “For the People Act” if you have questions:
Equal Citizens launched a filibuster tracker, so you can see where your senator stands on the filibuster. It also includes their phone numbers and their Twitter handles, so you can get in touch with them directly and push them to support filibuster reform!
The Brennan Center for Justice created a wonderful guide to H.R. 1. Check it out here. They also created an in-depth report about racism and disenfranchisement due to incarceration.
Recently, the Brennan Center also published a report on why H.R. 1 brings us closer to an inclusive democracy. Check it out here.
Here is the link to the House website on the For the People Act.
Flood social media with these awesome graphics about the For the People Act!
There is a lot of misinformation about H.R. 1, and the amount of misinformation will only grow as the fight heats up. That’s why it’s more important than ever to make sure everyone has all the facts on the bill - here is an article from Media Matters that can help you fact check. Additionally, the Brennan Center published a piece to help you decipher fact from fiction. Check it out here.
More About Me:
Kevin Rissmiller is a fellow at Equal Citizens and a Goodwin-Niering Scholar at Connecticut College majoring in Government and exploring sociology, economics, and applied statistics. In his free time, you will find him at Dunkins or (pre-pandemic) playing ultimate frisbee. Connect with him on LinkedIn.
If you want more updates on H.R. 1 from Kevin, then subscribe here!