Steven Holt: “I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, we already know that in 38 States there is introduced legislation that would…”

“I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, we already know that in 38 States there is introduced legislation that would suppress the participation and the votes of young, minority, and elderly voters. Now we see their allies here in Congress who are trying to eliminate the only Federal agency charged with improving the conduct of elections and making sure that every vote counts. If you like the direction of the State legislatures, you're going to be thrilled by the legislation before us today to close the Election Assistance Commission. The voter's vote should be behind a curtain of secrecy, but the process by which registration and elections are conducted should be transparent. If not, voters will cease to believe that the process is fair and that their vote counts. Let me remind my colleagues there is nothing more crucial to democracy than guaranteeing the integrity, the fairness, the accountability, the accuracy of elections. Democracy works only if the citizens believe it does. The system must work, and the people must believe in it; but voting shouldn't be an act of blind faith. It should be an act of record. The EAC helps maintain the integrity of the American electoral process. Too many people across the country have lost confidence in the legitimacy of the election results. Dismantling the EAC would further erode that necessary faith in the process.…”