On Tuesday, House Democrats introduced Nancy Pelosi's next elections power grab, H.R. 4.
With Congresswoman @RepTerriSewell and Judiciary Committee Chairman @RepJerryNadler’s leadership, Democrats are fighting back against an anti-democratic tide and protecting access to the ballot box for every American. Read my full statement here: https://t.co/BK6RFpBv6J
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) August 17, 2021
Jason Snead, Executive Director of Honest Elections Project Action, remarked:
H.R. 4 is markedly worse than the original version. The bill’s authors had many opportunities to make it constitutional or bipartisan, but at each opportunity, they sprinted in the other direction. This bill is a federal power grab and a gift to partisan, frivolous litigators who will use it to manipulate state laws and throw all federal elections into chaos, further undermining voter confidence in fair and accurate elections.
The full text of H.R. 4 can be read here.
As the Lawyers Democracy Fund Points out, H.R. 4 is a direct response the Supreme Court's recent decision in Brnovich.
A great thread from @lawyersdf on what #HR4 would mean in light of the Supreme Court's recent decision in Brnovich. https://t.co/TPleMxu8Cv
— RNLA ⚖️ (@TheRepLawyer) August 17, 2021
H.R. 4 would also remake how the courts would handle election law disputes.
In an assault on the neutrality of the court, #HR4's new text requires a court to give substantial weight to the reliance interests of citizens who brought the challenge and not to all parties equally.
— Lawyers Democracy (@lawyersdf) August 17, 2021
2/2 Furthermore, challengers can now block newly-passed state reforms by arguing they will ultimately have the effect of denying the right to vote without actually needing to provide proof of such.
— Lawyers Democracy (@lawyersdf) August 17, 2021
Also of concern, H.R. 4 would give the Department of Justice unprecedented power to unilaterally strike down state election reforms.
#HR4's new text gives the Attorney General of the United States unrestrained, unilateral authority to challenge and block state reforms that the AG believes deny the right to vote and leaves the fate of reforms in the hands of Washington judges and bureaucrats.
— Lawyers Democracy (@lawyersdf) August 17, 2021
H.R. 4 is expected to be voted on in the coming weeks. Democrats have been laying the foundation to introduce the legislation for months with a series of hearings once H.R. 1, the "Corrupt Politicians Act," failed to earn bipartisan support.
H.R. 4 is another partisan power grab by Democrats to federalize elections and should be opposed.