The Democrats in the House of Representatives introduced the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, a stimulus package that would allocate $3.6 billion for state and local governments to make their election systems safe for voters and poll workers under pandemic conditions.
Michael Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, had the following comment:
“Election officials need federal funding to keep our democracy running during the pandemic. This bill would mean we can have a free and participatory election in November.
“For election officials, the next few months are critical for obtaining supplies, installing new equipment, and testing new technology. Those preparations can’t wait until the fall. If Congress fails to provide the funding for this work, our democracy will suffer. Election results could be delayed by days and even weeks. And voters will find themselves disenfranchised.”
Additional Brennan Center Resources:
- Preparing for Election Day: Deadlines for Running a Safe Election (May 11, 2020): https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/preparing-election-day-deadlines-running-safe-election
- Ensuring Safe Elections (April 30, 2020): https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/ensuring-safe-elections
- Preparing Your State for an Election Under Pandemic Conditions (April 27, 2020): https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/preparing-your-state-election-under-pandemic-conditions
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