[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 2 (Wednesday, January 7, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E27]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCTION OF THE VOTING OPPORTUNITY AND TECHNOLOGY ENHANCEMENT 
                       RIGHTS (VOTER) ACT OF 2009

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                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, January 6, 2009

  Mr. CONYERS. Madam Speaker, today I rise to introduce the Voting 
Opportunity and Technology Enhancement Rights or VOTER Act of 2009. I 
introduce this legislation, more than 200 years after the founding of 
our democracy, because we have yet to realize a government that is 
truly representative of the principle, ``of the people, by the 
people.'' Not until every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast a 
ballot and have that ballot counted, will we have a proper democracy.
  Though the 2008 Election did not present the widespread 
irregularities and improprieties that were witnessed during the 2000 
and 2004 Elections, it was still an election in which voter 
disenfranchisement was attempted and accomplished. Voters' names are 
still missing from voter rolls. Voter harassment and intimidation 
continues.
  In fact, over the years, the methods that are used to disenfranchise 
voters have just become more contemporary and sophisticated as 
evidenced during the 2008 Election. For example, in my home State of 
Michigan, in the midst of the current subprime mortgage crisis, a 
strategy to challenge a voter's eligibility based on home foreclosure 
status was devised. In Virginia, a flyer telling Democrats to vote on 
Wednesday November 5, 2008, circulated.
  Anything short of a perfect election system is unacceptable. I have 
introduced VOTER so that we may work towards a more perfect system, one 
that reflects legitimacy, integrity, and inclusivity. VOTER will 
protect and expand voting rights in Federal elections, as well as 
ensure the proper administration of Federal elections.
  VOTER will:
  (1) provide for a uniform Federal write-in absentee ballot;
  (2) require States to provide for a verified audit trail;
  (3) count provisional ballots cast in the proper State;
  (4) properly allocate voting machines and poll workers;
  (5) provide for election day voter registration;
  (6) protect against improper purging of registration lists;
  (7) mandate early voting;
  (8) require verification and audit ability for punch cards;
  (9) simplify voter registration requirements;
  (10) allow voter identification by written affidavit;
  (11) provide for a study of nonpartisan election boards;
  (12) strengthen the EAC with funding and resources;
  (13) require the EAC to (a) enhance training for election officials; 
(b) require the use of publicly available open source software; (c) 
provide uniform standards for vote recounts; and (d) prohibit voting 
machine companies from engaging in political activities;
  (14) prohibit deceptive practices and intimidation;
  (15) prohibit caging and other questionable challenges;
  (16) restore voting rights to former felons; and
  (17) treat Election Day as a federal holiday.
  Some of these initiatives have already been implemented by States, 
the success of which was observed during the 2008 Election. There are 
32 States that currently provide early voting, including Florida, a 
State that witnessed over one million voters turn out to the polls the 
weekend before the election. There are also 28 States that currently 
provide no-excuse absentee voting.
  Such practices were critical to managing an unprecedented voter 
turnout. More than 130 million people turned out to vote in the 2008 
Election, the highest turnout in any presidential election. With this 
many longtime and new voters engaged in the 2008 election process, I 
suspect that voter participation will only increase in 2012.
  As such, we must pledge to fight for election reform in this 
Congress. The right to vote and to have that vote counted is one of our 
democracy's most fundamental principles. It is with VOTER that I intend 
to protect this fundamental principle, and I ask that my colleagues in 
this Congress join me in this fight for fair and just elections.




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