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U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX) (C), flanked by Texas state House Democrats, speaks during a news conference on voting rights outside the U.S. Capitol on July 13, 2021 in Washington, DC, as Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) (R) and Texas State Rep. Chris Turner (D-District 101) (L), Chair of the Texas House Democratic Caucus, listen. Getty Images/Alex Wong After scores of House Democrats fled the state to avoid voting on the issue, the Texas Senate passed a Republican-led elections reform bill Tuesday evening. Senate Republicans passed the controversial bill on a party-line vote of 18-4, which Democrats and voting rights advocates believe will suppress the votes of people of color and those with disabilities. On Monday and Tuesday, as many as 58 Texas Democrats decamped to Washington, D.C., in an attempt to deny Republicans the quorum needed to conduct business in the chamber. The Senate, however, had a quorum on Tuesday, with 22 of its 31 members present, allowing the chamber to vote on and enact Senate Bill 1. Unless Texas Democrats return to the state before the expiration of Gov. Greg Abbott’s 30-day special session, the bill would stagnate. According to the Associated Press, Abbott has threatened to arrest state lawmakers once they return. Following former President Donald Trump’s frequent false claims that the 2020 election would be stolen due to significant voter fraud, some states have implemented laws restricting voter access. The departure of the Democrats simply adds fuel to the state and national arguments over voting rights. A ban on drive-through voting, limits on 24-hour voting options, and stricter identification requirements for absentee voters are among the ideas included in the law passed Tuesday. Local officials would also be prohibited from sending absentee voting applications to individuals who are not eligible to vote by mail under the plan. Democrats said that the GOP senators’ bill was an attack on voting rights intended to depress voter turnout. In a statement released Tuesday, Rep. Marc Veasey, one of the Democrats who bolted, said, “They wouldn’t be doing this if they didn’t realize it would have a bad consequence, particularly for Brown and Black voters in the state of Texas, and in other places that are pursuing similar style legislation.” Republicans, on the other hand, argue that the measure will ensure the integrity of the election process, labeling it the “Texas election integrity bill.” According to the Texas Tribune, the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Bryan Hughes, said, “This bill is about making it both easier to vote and tougher to cheat.” According to the Tribune, Hughes blamed the response against his bill on a “horrible, misleading, phony national discourse coming out of Washington.” On July 13, 2021 in Austin, Texas, U.S. Rep. Mayes Middleton (R-TX) (C) of the Texas Freedom Caucus addresses the media at the Texas Capitol. Getty Images/Montinique Monroe Texas Democrats said they fled to Washington to persuade Congress to pass voting rights legislation, such as the For The People Act, in the face of Republican-led state legislatures around the country attempting to modify voting procedures. Rep. Rhetta Bowers, another Democrat who departed, said in a statement Tuesday, “We also know that we are living on borrowed time in Texas, and we can’t stay here indefinitely to run out the clock to halt Republicans’ anti-voter attacks.” “That is why we urgently need Congress to adopt the For the People Act. Texas Democrats will fight back with everything we have. However, Congress must act quickly.” On Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris met with Texas Democrats, and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., is slated to do the same. When asked if he would support a carve-out in the Senate filibuster to enact voting rights legislation, Manchin remained silent on Tuesday. He has previously opposed filibuster reforms. On Tuesday, President Joe Biden gave a huge speech in Philadelphia, condemning his predecessor’s “Big Lie” about a rigged election. The president urged Congress to pass the For The People Act, which would reinstate the Voting Rights Act. In a new letter released Wednesday, more than 150 firms, including Amazon, Target, and PepsiCo, backed modernizing the Voting Rights Act, according to NBC News./nRead More

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