Joe Biden

Statement of Administration Policy: S. 2093 – For the People Act of 2021

June 22, 2021

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

(Senate)
(Sen. Merkley, D-OR, Sen. Klobuchar, D-MN, and Sen. Schumer, D-NY)

The Administration strongly supports Senate passage of S. 2093, the For the People Act of 2021, just as it supported H.R. 1 in the House of Representatives.

Democracy is in peril, here, in America. The right to vote – a sacred right in this country – is under assault with an intensity and an aggressiveness we have not seen in a long time. The election of 2020 and its violent aftermath on January 6, 2021, when an armed mob of insurrectionists sought to overturn the voice of the people and a duly certified election, reminds us that our democracy is fragile. This landmark legislation is needed to protect the right to vote, ensure the integrity of our elections, and repair and strengthen American democracy.

The For the People Act also would reform redistricting to curtail the partisan gerrymandering that distorts our democracy. It would modernize our elections system and make those systems more secure. Consistent with the Administration's commitment to racial equity, the bill would also expand the tools available to the Justice Department to enforce the voting rights of all Americans. It would reform our campaign finance system with more transparency. It would establish stronger ethics rules for all three branches of government. These provisions would also serve to help restore confidence in our government, and in democratic institutions.

Since H.R. 1 passed in the House of Representatives, the assault on our democracy has intensified. In state after state, new restrictive laws on voting, and efforts to replace non-partisan election administration with partisan processes designed to overturn the will of the voters have become more widespread. The Administration applauds the efforts in the Senate to incorporate feedback that refines and strengthens the bill, and would make its reforms easier for states to implement. As the bill moves forward, the Administration will continue to work with Congress to ensure that it achieves lasting reform consistent with Congress' broad constitutional authority to strengthen our democracy.

Joseph R. Biden, Statement of Administration Policy: S. 2093 – For the People Act of 2021 Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/351272

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