Rep. Smucker Opposes Pelosi's "For the Politicians Act"

Statement

Today, Rep. Lloyd Smucker voted against H.R. 1, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats "For the Politicians Act," and released the following statement:

"At a time when we should be working to restore faith in our nation's elections, House Democrats have chosen to advance legislation to nationalize and centralize election administration in Washington, D.C. This legislation would require taxpayer funding of campaigns and elections by creating a 6-1 federal match for contributions under $200 while at the same time limiting free speech. Despite the fact that state legislatures across the country are working to improve election administration efforts, Speaker Pelosi and House Democrats are trying to force "one-size-fits-all" election law mandates from Washington. H.R. 1 is another example of Democrats in Washington taking a partisan approach that prioritizes politicians, not the people," said Smucker.

"I offered my Voter Confidence Act as an amendment to H.R 1. Unsurprisingly, hyper-partisan House Democrats on the Rules Committee rejected my commonsense and reasonable proposal to restore faith in our elections. My legislation is an effort to rebuild voters' trust in our electoral process by disseminating best practices and bringing together expert voices from across the nation. Reestablishing voter confidence should not be a partisan exercise, but House Democrats have demonstrated they have no interest in working across the aisle. They are relentless in their disastrous efforts to solidify their own power and expand the control and reach of the federal government," said Smucker.

H.R. 1 infringes on states' rights to set the "times, places and manner" of congressional elections. The legislation legalizes ballot harvesting, overrules state voter identification laws, eliminates requirements for signature verification, expands mail-in voting without security or safeguards, and turns the Federal Elections Commission into a partisan body by reducing equal membership of both parties from six commissioners to five. Read here for more from the Committee on House Administration on the ten most egregious provisions of H.R. 1.

Click here to watch Rep. Smucker's testimony on the Voter Confidence Act during this week's meeting of the House Rules Committee.

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