The House Administration Committee voted 8-4 on Thursday to advance a conservative election package, batting down dozens of amendments from Democrats during a marathon markup.
Democrats have described the bill, dubbed the American Confidence in Elections Act, as a blatant attempt to disenfranchise voters of color, protect wealthy donors and undercut Washington, D.C.’s right to self-govern.
Proponents say the 224-page bill is full of commonsense measures to improve voter confidence and election integrity. It would urge states to adopt voter ID requirements; override some D.C. election laws; prevent federal funds from flowing to states that allow noncitizen voting or “ballot harvesting,” in which third parties collect voters’ ballots; and prohibit federal agencies from tapping into conservative nonprofits.
