CONGRESSMAN BISHOP STANDS UP FOR VOTING RIGHTS

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02) committed to supporting voters throughout Georgia and across the country by serving as an original co-sponsor to H.R. 12, the Voter Empowerment Act of 2015. The bill would extend greater access to citizens at the ballot box, and would more effectively protect voter rights.

"By enhancing voter participation, this bill reflects the true character of the nation, holding leaders more directly accountable to the populations they represent," said Congressman Bishop. "Modernizing voter registration will improve the integrity of the election system and, during this 50^th anniversary of the monumental Voting Rights Act, will serve to advance the mission of equal rights for all Americans."

"Even if the days of poll taxes, literacy tests, and brutal physical intimidation are behind us, disenfranchisement tactics that aim to suppress voter participation are alive and well. The Voter Empowerment Act eliminates such divisive barriers separating voters from the ballot box and takes advantage of modern technology to bring our elections into the 21st Century," concluded Bishop.

Introduced by Congressmen John Lewis (GA), James Clyburn (SC), Steny Hoyer (MD), John Conyers (MI), and Robert Brady (PA), the Voter Empowerment Act draws support from dozens of Members of Congress, House Caucuses and civil rights advocacy groups. Among other important provisions, the Act would enable same-day voter registration, create a national voter protection hotline, and establish mandatory paper trail and voting machine standards. It would also allow online voter registration, expand early voting, ensure the equitable allocation of polling place resources, and prohibit voter caging and other deceptive practices that deter people from exercising their constitutional right to vote.