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As states across the country engage in the greatest assault on voting rights since Jim Crow, Connecticut has an opportunity in 2022 to set a new standard for protecting the freedom to vote.

LDF, the ACLU of Connecticut, LatinoJustice PRLDEF, Common Cause in Connecticut, and Hispanic Federation explain the benefits in a new fact sheet.

State lawmakers are actively considering An Act Concerning Elections and State Voting Rights (S.B. 471).  This transformative law builds upon the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 and successful state laws already passed in California, Washington, Oregon, and Virginia. New York is currently considering legislation similar to SB 471. The first bill passed will immediately become the most comprehensive state-level voting rights act in the country.

Despite Connecticut’s progressive reputation, there are still discriminatory barriers to equal participation in our democracy for voters of color and people whose first language is not English, particularly at the local level. In fact, Connecticut has some of the most restrictive voting laws in the nation with Black and Latino voters facing limited access to absentee voting, no early voting, and longer voting lines.

The Legislature is considering the law in 2022—just in time for Connecticut to lead as other states move backwards and Congress struggles to move forward on voting rights.

Read the fact sheet here.

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Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization. LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF. Follow LDF on TwitterInstagram and Facebook.

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