CONCORD (AP) — U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire is sponsoring a bill that would strengthen voting rights protections for young people.
The Protect the Youth Vote Act defines actions that violate the 26th Amendment, which prohibits state and federal governments from using age as a reason for denying the right to vote to U.S. citizens who are least 18.
The bill mentions cases such as a 2018 opinion by the Florida Supreme Court that found the state prevented in-person early voting sites from being located on university property. In 2019, Michigan agreed to a settlement after a challenge to laws, such as one requiring first-time voters who registered by mail or through a third-party voter registration drive to vote in person for the first time.
Examples of violations would be laws or requirements that limit the ability for students attending institutions of higher education and reside in that jurisdiction to register to vote in that jurisdiction; conversion of single member seats to at-large districts in a state or political subdivision with a high proportion of youth age voters; and requiring documentation to vote that exceeds the 2002 Help America Vote Act.
“Those who work in the public trust should protect the right to vote, not make it harder for Americans to cast a ballot and make their voices heard. Yet in too many places across the country voting rights are under attack,” Pappas, a Democrat, said in a statement.
Courts would be able to authorize appointment of “federal observers” by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management to enforce voting rights if an attorney general or “aggrieved person” institutes a proceeding. It also would give attorneys general authority to monitor and enforce the amendment in such cases.
Co-sponsors include Democrat U.S. Reps Joe Neguse of Colorado; Ruben Gallego of Arizona; Stephanie Murphy of Florida; and Grace Meng of New York.
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