Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) on Sunday said he won\u2019t vote for his party\u2019s For the People Act, a bill focused on expanding voting rights. His decision all but dooms Democrats\u2019 push for comprehensive election reform.<\/p>\n
In an opinion piece published in the Charleston Gazette-Mail, Manchin criticized the bill as \u201cpartisan\u201d and suggested he would only support legislation that garnered Republican support.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe that partisan voting legislation will destroy the already weakening binds of our democracy, and for that reason, I will vote against the For the People Act,\u201d Manchin wrote.<\/p>\n
The bill \u2015 co-sponsored by every Senate Democrat except for Manchin \u2015\u00a0would require states to implement election reforms including early voting, no-excuse absentee ballots, and automatic and same-day voter registration. It would also restore voting rights to ex-felons while making it harder to purge voter rolls, among many other things.<\/p>\n
The proposed legislation passed through the House in March on a nearly party-line vote. Last month, the bill advanced out of the Senate Rules Committee, with Republicans remaining universally opposed to it.<\/p>\n
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said recently that his chamber would vote on the bill this month, but Manchin\u2019s announcement leaves little hope for its passage.<\/p>\n
Manchin\u2019s position as a moderate Democrat, often seen as a swing vote on key measures, has made him one of Congress\u2019 most powerful figures as President Joe Biden seeks to move forward with his legislative agenda.<\/p>\n
The Senate is essentially split along party lines, with 50 Republicans, 48 Democrats and two independents who reliably vote with Democrats. In a tied vote, Vice President Kamala Harris would cast the tie-breaking vote.<\/p>\n
With Republicans\u2019 unwavering opposition, the For the People Act is expected to face a Senate filibuster \u2015 a procedural rule that requires the support of 60 senators to move to a vote on final passage for many measures. That means the bill is essentially dead on arrival unless Democrats change the Senate\u2019s filibuster rules.<\/p>\n
But Manchin has remained opposed to such a move and in his opinion piece, he stated that he \u201cwill not vote to weaken or eliminate the filibuster.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor as long as I have the privilege of being your U.S. senator,\u201d he wrote, \u201cI will fight to represent the people of West Virginia, to seek bipartisan compromise no matter how difficult and to develop the political bonds that end divisions and help unite the country we love.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the piece, Manchin denounced both \u201cstate laws that seek to needlessly restrict voting\u201d as well as \u201cpoliticians who ignore the need to secure our elections.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201c[C]ongressional action on federal voting rights legislation must be the result of both Democrats and Republicans coming together to find a pathway forward or we risk further dividing and destroying the republic we swore to protect and defend as elected officials,\u201d Manchin wrote.<\/p>\n
But at the state level, Republicans have seized on former President Donald Trump\u2019s lies about a \u201cstolen\u201d election by moving to pass restrictive voter laws. At least 14 states have enacted laws this year that make it harder to vote.<\/p>\n