Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery joined 22 attorneys general from other states and issued a letter to leaders in Congress, calling on Congress to end its push to pass legislation giving more election power to the federal government.
Specifically, the leaders expressed concerns over H.R. 4, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would amend the Voting Rights Act (VRA).
Calling the legislation “misguided” and “clumsy,” the officials argued the move, which has already passed the House of Representatives, would take away power from states to control their own election process.
“States that create laws based on what works best for their jurisdiction to respond to a crisis of confidence in our elections systems will inevitably be targeted by the Department of Justice leading to more confusion, litigation, and concerns over the validity of elections going forward,” the group wrote.
Furthermore, Slatery argued that the move would only allow for the federal government to hold more power.
“Tennesseans, through their elected officials, have the right to create laws that safeguard secure, fair elections and prevent voter fraud. This partisan attempt to amend the Voting Rights Act, which is a very good law and already provides a remedy when discrimination occurs, would only serve to give the federal government control of our state elections,” he detailed.
The letter also describes that the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act could potentially circumvent several Supreme Court rulings.
However, if fully enacted, the nearly two dozen state officials promised to take legal action against the measure.
“If these provisions are enacted, rest assured that the undersigned will aggressively defend our citizens’ rights to participate in free and fair elections without unconstitutional federal intrusion,” the letter continues.
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Cooper Moran is a reporter for The Star News Network. Follow Cooper on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Background Photo “Voting Booths” by Tim Evanson. CC BY-SA 2.0.
