The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law strongly opposes the reintroduction of H.R.4563, the American Confidence in Elections (ACE) Act. This bill was first introduced in 2022 as a purported alternative to the landmark, pro-voter Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act, which came very close to becoming law last Congress.
American democracy is facing serious threats, including efforts to undermine voting access, manipulate election outcomes, and infiltrate vulnerable election infrastructure. Congress needs to enact pro-voter, baseline national standards to safeguard the freedom to vote and protect our elections against the potent force of election denial.
The ACE Act does not offer those reforms. The bill would take American democracy backwards by further eroding voting access nationwide, removing campaign finance safeguards, and taking steps to undercut impartial election administration, especially in the District of Columbia. On the heels of the 10th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision gutting the core of the Voting Rights Act, Congress should be strengthening voting rights and democracy, not undermining them.
If Congress truly wants to safeguard American democracy and promote confidence in our elections, it should put aside the ACE Act and pass the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act.
