***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR Friday, February 24 at 1:30 PM ET***
Washington, DC – On Friday, February 24, 2023, at 1:30 PM ET, Marc Elias, founder of Democracy Docket, Angela Lang, executive director of Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC) in Wisconsin, Bradley Heard, deputy legal director of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Voting Rights Practice Group, Michael Podhorzer, former political director of the AFL-CIO, and Constance Boozer, chief of staff of the Defend Democracy Project, will join a virtual press briefing hosted by Defend Democracy Project following the release of Defend Democracy Project’s newest report, Voter Suppression: A Key Tool in the MAGA Playbook. The speakers will discuss the ongoing efforts by far-right MAGA Republicans to suppress the voices of voters across the country, and recent positive moves in key states to protect our right to choose our own leaders.
Among the report’s findings:
- Nearly 2 in 3 voters agree that some voters experience barriers to voting and that those barriers are intentionally created. Even prominent Republicans like former Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler have admitted that voter suppression efforts shaped the midterm elections.
- In Georgia, new voting restrictions reduced early and mail-in voting, precipitating lower Black and Hispanic voter participation rates, longer lines at certain precincts, and complaints of voter suppression.
- Wisconsin became one of the hardest to vote in ahead of the midterm elections, and predominantly Black and Hispanic areas saw significantly lower turnout than other parts of the state as a result. Republican lawmakers have already introduced another slate of voting changes and ballot initiatives pushing for greater restrictions.
Read the full report here.
While some states across the country are working harder than ever to defend our right to vote and have had successes, state legislatures in Georgia, Wisconsin, Arizona, and others have been working to enact laws that are increasingly making it more difficult for Americans to exercise their right to vote. The fight to protect democracy is not over yet.
Join us as our experts and community leaders discuss ongoing voter suppression efforts, threats to democracy including gerrymandering, and the assaults on the right to vote and administer free and fair elections from state legislatures nationwide.
WHO:
Marc Elias, founder, Democracy Docket
Angela Lang, executive director, Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC) in Wisconsin
Bradley Heard, deputy legal director for voting rights, Southern Poverty Law Center
Michael Podhorzer, former political director of the AFL-CIO
Constance Boozer, chief of staff, Defend Democracy Project
WHAT: Virtual Press Conference
WHEN: Friday, February 24, 2023, at 1:30 PM ET
WHERE: Register to join the Zoom event (Registration required)
