Democrat-Led House Passes H.R.1, Aimed to Federalize U.S. Elections

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 09: The U.S. Capitol is shown as members of the U.S. Senate list
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The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed H.R. 1, otherwise known as the “For the People Act,” which Republicans warn will compromise election integrity and ultimately lead to the federalization of U.S. elections.

The Democrat-led House passed the legislation on party lines, 220 to 210. A summary of the bill notes that it “expands voter registration (e.g., automatic and same-day registration) and voting access (e.g., vote-by-mail and early voting)” and imposes limits on removing voters from voter rolls.

Republicans have warned that the Democrat legislation would vastly reduce the power of the states to control and operate elections at the local level.

“If this bill passes, it puts in all these terrible provisions,” Hans von Spakovsky, manager of the Heritage Foundation’s Election Law Reform Initiative and a senior legal fellow of the Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, said during a January appearance on Breitbart News Daily.

“It’s a federal micromanagement of the election process, and everything that folks on the left want to reduce the integrity [and] the security of the election process is in there,” he continued.

“If you’re a state like Alabama or Texas that has a voter ID law, you might as well forget it, because this federal law would override all state voter ID laws so they’re now unenforceable,” von Spakovsky added.

Speaking to Breitbart News on Tuesday, Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) warned that the “Socialist Democrat Election Fraud Enhancement Act” would do “great damage” to the nation’s election system by taking power away from the states.

“The socialists seek to mandate no-fault absentee ballots, which are the tool of choice for vote thieves. They seek to eliminate the photo identification requirement and, by the way, when the federal government does it, that eliminates all state laws to the contrary,” Brooks said.

“It, to a very large degree, federalizes and micromanages the election process administered by the states. It implemented, as I mentioned, some of the worst changes in election rules that occurred during the 2020 election,” the Alabama congressman continued. “It requires states to restore the ability of felons to vote the moment they’re out of prison, regardless of uncompleted parole, probation, or restitution requirements or what states may believe is the appropriate restoration of voting rights for convicted felons.”

Rep. Lauren Boebart (R-CO) also warned against the legislation during an exclusive interview with Breitbart News last week.

“We have H.R.1 and the Democrats, they call this the ‘For the People Act.’ No. It’s the ‘For the Swamp Act.’ This is something that will federalize our elections. It’s a D.C. takeover of our elections,” Boebert said. “This goes right back to them controlling the language. They act like it’s something that’s great for you.  … They act like all of these things are wonderful for the American people, and they’re not.”

“But the ‘For the People Act,’ ‘For the Swamp Act,’ you know, this actually has tax dollars that will pay for politicians’ campaigns. It’s disgusting,” she added. “No tax dollar should go to a campaign.”

As Fox News reported, “A major pillar of the legislation is setting up a new public financing system for congressional and presidential elections to incentivize small-dollar donations”:

The legislation would establish a 6:1 match for each grassroots contribution to a candidate up to $200.

For example, a $200 donation to a House candidate would garner a $1,200 match in public funds for a total contribution of $1,400.

Other Republicans forcefully spoke out against the bill following the passage:

The House passage of H.R.1 appears to mark the beginning of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) plans for a two-week legislative blitz, turning her chamber “into a factory for Democratic priorities.”

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