[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 7043-7044]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        RIGHT TO VOTE AMENDMENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Wisconsin (Mr. Pocan) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. POCAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to talk about the most 
fundamental right we as Americans have as citizens of this great 
country, the right to vote. The right to vote is not just fundamental; 
it is the right that preserves all of our other liberties that we as 
Americans hold dear. In fact, this right is so fundamental that most 
Americans, understandably, assume it is already enshrined in the 
Constitution. Unfortunately, Madam Speaker, most Americans would be 
wrong.
  While the right to vote is inherent throughout our founding document, 
and there are amendments prohibiting discrimination, nothing in the 
Constitution explicitly guarantees our right to vote. We, as Americans, 
possess no affirmative right to vote.
  Why is this important? Because without a constitutional provision, 
courts have upheld burdensome registration requirements, voter-
identification laws, and reduced early voting opportunities in States 
across the country.
  According to the Brennan Center for Justice, just this year alone, 
more than 80 restrictive laws have been introduced in more than 30 
States. From New York to Washington, legislation has been introduced 
that require voters to show a photo ID. States from Virginia to New 
Mexico have considered bills that would make voter registration more 
difficult. And from Arizona to Tennessee, States have taken steps to 
limit early voting.
  Unfortunately, this plague of restrictive voting efforts has hit my 
State of Wisconsin as well. In 2011, our legislature passed a law that 
would limit the fundamental rights Wisconsinites have to vote. Not only 
would this law require a photo ID; it also took steps to disenfranchise 
senior citizens and college students, reduce registration 
opportunities, and restrict the ability of citizens to receive absentee 
ballots.
  But Wisconsin has something that other States do not possess--a 
guaranteed right to vote. Article III, section

[[Page 7044]]

1, of the Wisconsin Constitution specifically states:

       Every United States citizen age 18 or older who is a 
     resident of an election district in this State is a qualified 
     elector of that district.

  This one sentence makes a huge difference for Wisconsinites. In two 
separate cases challenging the Wisconsin voter ID law, the Wisconsin 
circuit courts have ruled that these restrictive, burdensome voting 
laws are unconstitutional because, from the decision in NAACP of 
Milwaukee v. Walker:

       The Wisconsin Constitution expressly guarantees the right 
     to vote.

  But this isn't enough. Not all States have this right. Our friends in 
Indiana, as we have seen, have little recourse if a restrictive voting 
law is signed into law.
  Now more than ever, we need to be protecting our right to vote, not 
restricting it. We need to reaffirm our founding principle that our 
country is at its strongest when everyone participates. We need to 
guarantee a right to vote for everyone.
  So this week, along with my friend and colleague, Congressman Keith 
Ellison from Minnesota, I introduced a right-to-vote amendment to the 
Constitution that will explicitly guarantee, without a doubt, the right 
of the American people to vote. The amendment is as simple as it is 
necessary: every American citizen possesses the fundamental right to 
vote in every public election where they reside, and Congress has the 
right and power to protect it.
  No more will Americans have to prove their right to vote has been 
infringed. Instead, the burden of proof will be left to States to 
demonstrate that any efforts they take will not deny or abridge the 
fundamental right to vote.
  Now, I know there are some out there who will say that an amendment 
to the Constitution is unrealistic; it's too hard to achieve. Those 
critics are shortsighted. This is about engaging my colleagues in 
Congress on both sides of the aisle and the American public in a 
movement to ensure our right to vote is not at the mercy of those 
acting with partisan motives. The right to vote is not a Democratic 
right, nor is it a Republican right. It is an American right, and it is 
fundamental to a government for the people, by the people.
  Madam Speaker, I'm proud to support this bill, and I urge my 
colleagues to join on and protect our most fundamental right.

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