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<h1>A Welcome Surprise: There Are More States Working to Expand Voting Rights than to Restrict Them</h1>
 <div><div><div><p><span>This article originally appeared at <a href="http://www.southernstudies.org/2014/02/states-shift-from-voter-suppression-to-voter-expan.html">Facing South</a>.</span></p>  <p><span style="height: 1.7em;"></span><span style="height: 1.7em;"> </span></p>  <p><span style="height: 1.7em;">Before the 2012 election, there were numerous efforts in the states to restrict voting. But now the pendulum appears to be swinging in the other direction,     giving voting-rights advocates cause for cautious optimism.</span></p>  <p>A <a href="http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/voting-laws-roundup-2014">new analysis</a> from the    <a href="http://www.brennancenter.org/">Brennan Center for Justice</a> at New York University School of Law found that hundreds of bills to expand voting     access have been introduced in most states over the past two years.</p>  <blockquote>"It is encouraging to see so many important leaders embrace the need to fix voting."</blockquote>  <p>"For years, partisans have moved swiftly to restrict the right to vote," says Myrna P&eacute;rez, deputy director of the Brennan Center's Democracy Program. "Now,     given new momentum, there is a key opportunity to transform voting in America."</p>  <p>In the run-up to the 2012 election, 41 states introduced 180 restrictive voting bills, while 19 states passed 27 measures making it harder to vote, the     Brennan Center's analysis found.</p>  <p>But in 2013 that trend began to shift, as 46 states introduced 237 bills to make voting easier compared to 33 states that introduced 92 restrictive     measures. Ten states passed 13 bills to expand access, while eight states passed nine restrictive laws.</p>  <p>So far this year, 190 bills to expand voting access have been introduced in 31 states. That compares to 49 restrictive measure introduced in 19 states.</p>  <p>The shift in the states comes amid federal efforts to improve voting.</p>  <p>Last month, a bipartisan group in Congress     <a href="http://www.thenation.com/blog/177962/members-congress-introduce-new-fix-voting-rights-act"> introduced a bill to strengthen the Voting Rights Act </a> . The key civil rights law had been weakened by a 2013 Supreme Court decision that threw out the formula for which jurisdictions have to get approval from     the Justice Department before making any voting changes.</p>  <p>Also last month, the bipartisan Presidential Commission on Election Administration     <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/bipartisan-election-commission-releases-list-of-suggested-fixes/2014/01/22/76902880-8374-11e3-bbe5-6a2a3141e3a9_story.html"> issued a report </a> calling for reforms to shorten long voting lines, expand early voting, and modernize registration. Congress will    <a href="http://www.rules.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=CommitteeHearings&amp;ContentRecord_id=a34f1454-239d-4e55-8a87-6945e8841b37">hold a hearing</a> about the panel's recommendations on Feb. 12.</p>  <p>But the Brennan Center warns that voting rights advocates must remain vigilant, as restrictive voting bills remain a threat in 19 states, including the     Southern states of Alabama, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.</p>  <p>"We will continue to monitor efforts that make it harder to vote," says P&eacute;rez. "But it is encouraging to see so many important leaders embrace the need to     fix voting."</p>  <p><figure><img src="/wp-content/uploads/imports/573437185a6f45f28f6e04269ab49fcb.jpg"><figcaption><span><p><span>This map and the one below are from <a href="http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/voting-laws-roundup-2014" style="width: medium; height: 17px;">"Voting Laws Roundup 2014"</a> released by the Brennan Center for Justice on Feb. 6 2014.</span></p></span></figcaption></figure></p>  <p>&nbsp;</p>  <p><figure><img src="/wp-content/uploads/imports/9b4123ee810946a9bcacbbe8e2f6e446.jpg"></figure></p>  <hr style="width: 50%;" width="50%"><ul><li><b><span style="height: 20px;"></span></b></li>  <b> </b>  <li><b><span style="height: 20px;"></span></b></li>  <b> </b>  <li><b></b></li>  </ul></div><!-- <img src="a4b00b879dab460785b8fbb9b91daaeb"> --></div><!-- <p><img src="ef78f2a590bd4d1191d58d32c343f0a3">Sue Sturgis wrote this article for&#160;<a href="http://www.southernstudies.org/2014/02/states-shift-from-voter-suppression-to-voter-expan.html">Facing South</a>, a project of the&#160;<span style="height: 19px;">Institute for Southern Studies.</span></p> --></div><!-- <p><span style="height: 19px;"><b>More Stories:</b></span></p>&#13;  --><!-- <a href="http://dev-wp.yesmagazine.org/people-power/respect-my-vote">Rapper 2 Chainz: Ex-Felons Can Get Their Voting Rights Back</a> --><!-- <a href="http://dev-wp.yesmagazine.org/peace-justice/five-signs-the-voting-rights-act-will-survive">5 Signs the Voting Rights Act Will Survive</a> --><!-- <a href="http://dev-wp.yesmagazine.org/people-power/keeping-it-clean-maines-fight-for-fair-elections">Can't Buy My Vote: Maine&#8217;s Fight for Fair Elections</a> -->
<p>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org">Yes! Magazine</a> at <a href="https://dev-wp.yesmagazine.org/democracy/2014/02/14/more-states-working-to-expand-voting-rights-than-to-restrict-them">https://dev-wp.yesmagazine.org/democracy/2014/02/14/more-states-working-to-expand-voting-rights-than-to-restrict-them</a>.</p><link href="https://dev-wp.yesmagazine.org/democracy/2014/02/14/more-states-working-to-expand-voting-rights-than-to-restrict-them" rel="canonical"/><p>Yes! Magazine is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of ... . Learn more at <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org">Yes! Magazine</a></p><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://dev-wp.yesmagazine.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=13735&ga4=G-74QJNNY44Z" style="width:1px;height:1px;">

A Welcome Surprise: There Are More States Working to Expand Voting Rights than to Restrict Them
 This article originally appeared at Facing South.     Before the 2012 election, there were numerous efforts in the states to restrict voting. But now the pendulum appears to be swinging in the other direction,     giving voting-rights advocates cause for cautious optimism.  A new analysis from the    Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law found that hundreds of bills to expand voting     access have been introduced in most states over the past two years.  "It is encouraging to see so many important leaders embrace the need to fix voting."  "For years, partisans have moved swiftly to restrict the right to vote," says Myrna Pérez, deputy director of the Brennan Center's Democracy Program. "Now,     given new momentum, there is a key opportunity to transform voting in America."  In the run-up to the 2012 election, 41 states introduced 180 restrictive voting bills, while 19 states passed 27 measures making it harder to vote, the     Brennan Center's analysis found.  But in 2013 that trend began to shift, as 46 states introduced 237 bills to make voting easier compared to 33 states that introduced 92 restrictive     measures. Ten states passed 13 bills to expand access, while eight states passed nine restrictive laws.  So far this year, 190 bills to expand voting access have been introduced in 31 states. That compares to 49 restrictive measure introduced in 19 states.  The shift in the states comes amid federal efforts to improve voting.  Last month, a bipartisan group in Congress      introduced a bill to strengthen the Voting Rights Act  . The key civil rights law had been weakened by a 2013 Supreme Court decision that threw out the formula for which jurisdictions have to get approval from     the Justice Department before making any voting changes.  Also last month, the bipartisan Presidential Commission on Election Administration      issued a report  calling for reforms to shorten long voting lines, expand early voting, and modernize registration. Congress will    hold a hearing about the panel's recommendations on Feb. 12.  But the Brennan Center warns that voting rights advocates must remain vigilant, as restrictive voting bills remain a threat in 19 states, including the     Southern states of Alabama, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.  "We will continue to monitor efforts that make it harder to vote," says Pérez. "But it is encouraging to see so many important leaders embrace the need to     fix voting."  This map and the one below are from "Voting Laws Roundup 2014" released by the Brennan Center for Justice on Feb. 6 2014.