Tom Price: “I strongly support the undisturbed right of all Americans to freely exercise their right to vote. I support the…”

“I strongly support the undisturbed right of all Americans to freely exercise their right to vote. I support the extension of the Voting Rights Act (VRA). H.R. 9 is not extension of the Voting Rights Act. This is not your parents Voting Rights Act. The 1965 VRA was a monumental step in the right direction--correcting past sins--and it has worked extremely well. In Georgia in 1964 there were fewer than 25 minority elected officials. In Georgia today there are 61 minority elected officials. In Georgia in 1964, 27.4 percent of minority citizens were registered to vote. In Georgia today, 64.2 percent of minority citizens are registered to vote. In Georgia in 1964 there were NO minority statewide elected officials. In Georgia in 2004 there were 9--out of 34--minority statewide elected officials; including our State Attorney General, our State Labor Commissioner and the Chief Justice of our State Supreme Court. Great progress has been made. The Georgia of today is not the Georgia of 1964. In fact, minorities in Georgia are enfranchised to a greater degree than those in many States not currently covered by the VRA--and States that will never be covered by the VRA--because of H.R. 9. Why? Because this legislation will perpetuate the myth that nothing has changed, that no advances have occurred in minority participation in the voting process.…”