March 28, 2007
Dear Senator Obama and Representative Emanuel,
We
write to thank you for your leadership efforts to strengthen the
integrity of our nation’s elections with the introduction of the
Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2007 (S.
453/H.R. 1281).
In the 2006 congressional elections, voters in
cities and districts across the country found themselves the targets of
campaigns to actively prevent their participation in the election.
Practices such as packaging misinformation about the date, time and
place of the election or manufacturing threats to intimidate vulnerable
populations have no place in our democracy.
While we need
policies which promote participation by easing voter registration,
creating early voting opportunities and other changes, we must not
tolerate practices that serve only to discourage participation and
prevent eligible voters from engaging in the political process.
Voters
in approximately 30 states were the victims of efforts to deter them
from going to the polls. It is a serious and growing problem that
unscrupulous political operatives seek to gain advantage by actively
working to suppress voter turnout.
U.S. PIRG has had a long
and successful involvement in numerous efforts to engage voters and
improve access to the polls. The PIRG’s New Voters Project has
registered more than 500,000 young people in the last two election
cycles. We undertook this project because we believe that
participation is a cornerstone of our democracy. Targeted efforts to
dissuade voter engagement are anathema to our nation’s most fundamental
principles.
The nation’s history is one of extending the
franchise and opening the doors to participation to more Americans. S.
453/H.R. 1281 continues in that tradition. We welcome the legislation
and look forward to working with you to see it enacted into law.
Sincerely,
Gary Kalman
Democracy Advocate
