[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.J. Res. 9 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. J. RES. 9

  Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to 
    protect the voting rights of the citizens of the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 3, 2019

Mr. Engel submitted the following joint resolution; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                            JOINT RESOLUTION


 
  Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to 
    protect the voting rights of the citizens of the United States.

    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled   (two-thirds of each House 
concurring therein), That the following article is proposed as an 
amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be 
valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when 
ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States 
within seven years after the date of its submission for ratification:

                              ``Article--

    ``Section 1. The President and Vice President shall be elected by 
the citizens of the United States.
    ``Section 2. No voting qualification or prerequisite to voting, nor 
any standard, practice, or procedure, shall be imposed or applied by 
Congress, or by any State or political subdivision, to deny or abridge 
the right of any citizen of the United States to vote. The right of the 
citizens of the United States to vote shall not be infringed on account 
of any undue burden of proof of identity or citizenship, nor by any 
standard, practice, or procedure implemented since the previous 
national election for Senator and Representative in Congress.
    ``Section 3. The right of the citizens of the United States to 
engage in free and fair political debate shall be free from acts or 
expenditures by foreign persons, and from undue or anonymous influence 
from any person.
    ``Section 4. Districts represented by members of Congress, or by 
members of any legislative body of any State or political subdivision, 
shall be geographically compact and composed of contiguous territory. 
No State or political subdivision shall deviate from this requirement 
except by reference to existing natural or political boundaries.
    ``Section 5. No citizen who has reached eighteen years of age shall 
be barred from participating in elections for President and Vice 
President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, on account of 
failure to register to vote.
    ``Section 6. Elections for President and Vice President, and for 
Senator and Representative in Congress, shall be held on the Tuesday 
next after the first Monday in November. This day shall be designated a 
national holiday. No entity shall interfere with, withhold regular 
compensation from, or otherwise penalize the exercise of the right of 
any of its agents, employees, contractors, or assigns so entitled to 
vote on this day.
    ``Section 7. Congress shall have the power to enforce this article 
by appropriate legislation.
    ``Section 8. This article shall take effect two years after the 
date of its ratification.''.
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