New poll shows voting rights legislation is widely popular — as GOP prepares to block it

As Republicans gear up to block a landmark pro-democracy bill from brought by Democrats that aims to make it easier to vote and attempts try to root out corruption within the federal government, a new poll released Wednesday found the bill’s provisions are widely popular, with either a majority or plurality of Americans supporting the legislation’s key parts.

The Politico/Morning Consult survey found five of the objectives within H.R. 1 — also known as the For the People Act — have majority support.

A whopping 78% of Americans support a provision to help states secure their election systems, which is included in the For the People Act.

Another 70% of Americans support the bill’s requirement that political advertising groups disclose their top donors and officials. This provision is aimed at super PACs that run millions in advertising but are not required to say who their donors are.

Nearly two-thirds, or 62%, back a provision in the legislation that all candidates for president or vice president release the last 10 years of their tax returns. That provision was aimed at Donald Trump, who never willingly released his tax returns either as a candidate or while in office. The New York Times obtained roughly two decades of Trump’s returns and found that he avoided paying taxes for years. The returns also chronicled massive financial losses that called his business prowess into question.

More than half, or 53%, support same-day voter registration — which the For the People Act would require but which some GOP-controlled states oppose or have banned. Montana, one of the many Republican-run states to pass a law in 2021 making it harder to vote, eliminated same-day voter registration in April.

A majority, or 52%, support the For the People Act’s requirement that states create independent redistricting commissions to try to root out partisan gerrymandering.

A plurality of Americans also support other voting rights provisions within the For the People Act. For example, 46% of Americans support the bill’s requirement that states create automatic voter registration — in which eligible voters are automatically registered when they interact with a state government agency, such as the Department of Motor Vehicles.

And another 42% back a provision that would implement a standard states must follow in order to purge voters from the rolls — an effort to prevent eligible voters from wrongly having their registrations canceled.

Republican lawmakers have come out against the For the People Act, even lying about what it does in an effort to gin up opposition to it.

However, this poll shows provides some evidence those lies haven’t worked, as voters support the bill’s key provisions. And it’s not the only poll that found the For the People Act is widely popular with voters. A survey from the progressive group Data for Progress from January found 67% of Americans support the bill. Another poll released in May from the Southern Poverty Law Center also found 67% of voters back the legislation.

Republicans have privately admitted that the For the People Act would make it harder for GOP candidates to win in the future because it would make voting for eligible voters easier and would thwart the dozens of voter suppression bills that GOP state legislatures have passed.

Republicans have been trying to make it harder to vote in the wake of Trump’s loss, using Trump’s voter fraud lies to justify their suppression efforts.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.