Zoe Lofgren: “This amendment aims to exempt States that have taken measures to increase voter turnout that are not subject to…”

“This amendment aims to exempt States that have taken measures to increase voter turnout that are not subject to additional Federal voter registration mandates, and I think what it really does is undermine the progress that would be made under H.R. 1. In November of 2016, the general election, nearly one in five people who were eligible to vote but who did not vote cited registration issues as their main reason for not casting a ballot. H.R. 1 sets a national standard for voter registration and access to the ballot in Federal elections. Now, an improvement in participation rates is fine, but it doesn't mean that proven programs, such as the automatic voter registration program, aren't necessary. You know, automatic voter registration is not simply to increase turnout. It serves a more fundamental purpose: to protect the right to vote by removing bureaucracy and obstacles from the process of registering to vote. Now, nearly every State that has implemented automatic voter registration has seen dramatically increased registration rates. High rates of voter registration are inherently healthy for a democracy. Madam Chair, I include in the Record a letter that I received just yesterday from Kate Brown, the Governor of Oregon. State of Oregon, March 6, 2019. Dear Members of Congress: I write in strong support of H.R.…”