The tightening of the electoral law initiated by Republicans in many states is, according to US President Joe Biden, an “attack on democracy”. The goal of the laws is that fewer and fewer people vote, warned the Democrat Biden on Tuesday. The efforts are un-American, undemocratic and unpatriotic, stressed Biden in a speech in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “Arent you ashamed?” asked the President, addressing the Republicans. Undermining the right to free and fair elections is the “most important challenge” for democracy since the American Civil War.
“We have to act,” demanded Biden. He promised to work for a reform of the electoral law that has been blocked by the Republicans in the Senate. The Republicans had set out to invalidate votes at their discretion. “They want the option to reject the bottom line and ignore the will of voters if their preferred candidate loses,” Biden said.
At the beginning of the week around 50 Democratic MPs had fled Texas to prevent a planned vote on tightening the electoral law. You could now face arrest.
In the USA, the right to vote, which is shaped by the states, is extremely competitive. Many republican-ruled states have already passed regulations or are pursuing regulations that critics believe would make voting more difficult. When the hurdles to voting are higher, minority groups tend to stay at home in the US – and these populations are often more likely to vote for Democrats. The Republicans, on the other hand, argue that their only concern is to make electoral fraud more difficult.