WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today marks the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the landmark legislation that secured fundamental voting rights for millions of Americans. But as we commemorate this progress, Donald Trump is actively working to rig the rules and tilt elections toward himself and his MAGA allies.
Congressional Republicans are attempting to gerrymander Texas as part of a brazen mid-decade redistricting power grab after already pushing the MAGA-dominated Supreme Court to dismantle the VRA’s protections against racial gerrymandering. They’re fast-tracking a scheme designed to hand Trump exactly what he demanded – five additional Republican House seats. This comes as polling shows that the vast majority of Americans disapprove of Trump’s signature policies, including tariffs and his Big, Ugly Bill. As the nation marks the 60th anniversary of legislation that aimed to eliminate voting barriers, Republicans are creating new ones through redistricting schemes.
In response, Defend America Action Senior Spokesperson Rodericka Applewhaite released the following statement:
“Sixty years ago, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law, ensuring that every American would have an equal voice in our democracy. Today, Donald Trump and his MAGA Republicans are celebrating this anniversary by launching a brazen assault on voting rights – completely betraying that promise. Republicans know they will lose if they run with their wildly unpopular agenda on a level playing field, and are only forcing through this mid-decade redistricting because their toxic platform is such a disaster.
“On the very day we should be celebrating 60 years of progress in voting rights, we are instead witnessing a betrayal of the American people and the legacy of the Voting Rights Act. Texas Democrats have courageously left the state to break quorum, now facing threats of arrest from Governor Abbott, showing just how far Trump’s allies will go to shield him from the consequences of his disastrous, unpopular policies. The American people will remember this devastating betrayal, and Republicans will pay the price for choosing Trump and billionaires over the democratic principles we commemorate today.”
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