Sen. Manchin Comes Out Against the For the People Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) wrote Saturday in an op-ed for the Charleston Gazette-Mail that he will vote against the For the People Act currently being considered in the Senate and will continue to oppose eliminating the filibuster. Despite overwhelming Democratic support for this sweeping voting and election reform bill, the West Virginia senator stated he is deterred by the staunch Republican opposition to the bill, and that voting rights legislation must be achieved by bipartisan support, writing, “action on federal voting rights legislation must be the result of both Democrats and Republicans coming together to find a pathway forward.” He will not vote with his Democratic colleagues to pass this much-needed bill to protect voting rights as Republican state legislators try to restrict access to the ballot box.
Despite this setback for the For the People Act, Manchin did signal support for the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, stating that he will “continue to engage with my Republican and Democratic colleagues about the value” of the bill and work to move it forward in the Senate on a bipartisan basis.