U.S. Houses Passes Voting Rights Bill But Senate May Kill It

The US House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a voting rights measure that Democrats say will help counteract a wave of voting restrictions in Republican-led states, but it faces slim chances of passing the Senate.

Photo Insert: Voting restrictions in red states have targeted racial minorities and voting by mail.

The House voted 219-212 on the bill to restore key protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which outlawed discriminatory voting practices. The measure is named after the late Representative John Lewis, a civil rights hero who died last year.

But the outlook in the Senate was poor. Only one Republican, Senator Lisa Murkowski, has expressed support for the proposal, but Democrats will need at least 10 Republicans to help advance it in the chamber, which is divided 50-50 along party lines.

At least 18 states have enacted laws so far this year that restrict voter access, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University.

Proponents of the measures say they are necessary to counter fraud, which Republican former President Donald Trump has falsely claimed led to his 2020 election defeat. Multiple courts, state election bodies, and members of his own administration have rejected that claim.

Democrats have accused Republicans at the state level of enacting such measures to make it harder for racial minorities who tend to support Democratic candidates to cast ballots.

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