Harris says the right to vote is 'an American concern,' not partisan

(Image credit: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

published 22 June 2021

After Senate Republicans blocked debate on the For the People Act, Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters on Tuesday evening that "the fight is not over."

The Senate voted 50-50 along party lines, with 60 votes necessary to move forward with debate. The sweeping For the People Act would have expanded early voting, permitted same-day and automatic voter registration, changed campaign finance laws, and limited partisan gerrymandering.

Harris, who has been tasked with leading the Biden administration's work on voting rights, presided over the vote. After leaving the Senate floor, Harris told reporters "this is one of the most critical issues that the United States Congress could take up, which is about the fundamental right to vote in our country. I think it is clear, certainly for the American people, that when we're talking about the right to vote it is not a Republican concern, or a Democratic concern, it is an American concern."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Americans have the right to vote "in a meaningful way," she continued, and it comes down to whether there is "actual access to the voting process or is that being impeded." Harris said she and President Biden both support the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, and "the fight is not over." The John Lewis Voting Rights Act, which would restore and strengthen parts of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, is expected to come to the Senate floor sometime this year.

Explore More

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox