[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 149 (Thursday, November 10, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S12679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         DECEPTIVE PRACTICES AND VOTER INTIMIDATION PREVENTION

  Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I proudly join as a cosponsor of Senator 
Obama's Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 
2005. This important legislation will protect voters from the deceptive 
practices that aimed to keep them from the polls on election day.
  Free and fair elections are the foundation of our democracy--a 
democracy built on the unassailable principle that every single 
American should have an equal say in their government. No American 
should ever approach their polling place in fear. No American should 
ever worry that they will somehow be penalized for exercising their 
fundamental right to vote. No American should ever be tricked into 
thinking they do not have the right to vote.
  The Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevent Act takes 
great strides towards ensuring that no American will ever be denied the 
right to vote. It both criminalizes deceptive practices and provides 
affected individuals with a private right of action. It prevents the 
negative effects of deceptive practices by ensuring voters get accurate 
election information. It also requires the Attorney General to report 
allegations of deceptive practices, the actions taken to correct them, 
and any prosecutions resulting from those allegations.
  We have worked hard to bring fair and free elections to people around 
the word-including the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. We must do 
everything in our power to ensure that our own elections are at least 
as fair and as free.

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