Letter | 30 Groups Demand Senate Cancel Recess
The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Senate Majority Leader
317 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable Richard Shelby
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations
304 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable Roy Blunt
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration
260 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
To Leader McConnell, Chairman Shelby, and Chairman Blunt:
With less than four months until the November election, time is of the essence for Congress to provide election officials with the resources needed to ensure that no voter is forced to risk putting themselves and their loved ones in hospital beds in order to cast their ballot.
With over 130,000 Americans dead and cases surging across the country, responding to the COVID-19 pandemic should be the Senate’s top priority. Yet, the Senate has willfully failed to act under your leadership and remains in recess despite the urgent need to address the worsening pandemic and safeguard our rapidly-approaching elections.
That’s why we—the undersigned organizations on behalf of the millions of Americans we represent—demand that Senate leadership immediately end congressional recess and recall senators to the Capitol to swiftly pass legislation to provide election assistance grants to every state.
While Congress appropriated $400 million in federal funds earlier this year, those election assistance grants are grossly insufficient as state and local governments respond to our ongoing health and economic crisis. Now, states urgently need the $3.6 billion in additional federal funds provided by the House of Representatives in the HEROES Act more than seven weeks ago to provide states resources to expand mail-in voting, make polling places safe for in-person voting, and increase online voter registration.
It should be clear to senators of both parties that the cost of ensuring that every eligible voter can safely cast their ballot amid this pandemic is a small price to pay to preserve our democracy—but given your efforts to block this funding over the past two months, it bears repeating that this pandemic continues to threaten the very foundation of our democracy.
Given the urgency, the Senate must immediately return to business to consider legislation—including the HEROES Act—that grants states funding to administer safe, fair, and accessible elections this fall.
Failing to return from recess puts our democracy at risk and is an abdication of responsibility that the American people cannot afford from their representatives right now.
Sincerely,
Stand Up America
Co-Signed By The Following Organizations:
American Association of People with Disabilities
Clean Elections Texas
Color Of Change
Common Cause
DARES Coalition
DC Vote
Defend Democracy
DemCast USA
Democratic Coalition
Fair Fight Action
Fix Democracy First
Franciscan Action Network
Greenpeace USA
Health Care Voter
Indivisible
Indivisible St. Johns, FL
League of Women Voters of the United States
Let America Vote / End Citizens United Action Fund
MoveOn
National Election Defense Coalition (NEDC)
National Vote at Home Institute and Coalition
NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice
Nonprofit VOTE
Patriotic Millionaires
Public Citizen
Secure Elections Network
Tax March
UnidosUS
Voices for Progress
Voto Latino