US House Committee to hold hearing on voting rights and elections in the US territories
On Tuesday, July 28, 2020, the United States House Committee on House Administration’s Subcommittee on Elections will hold a hearing to address the denial of voting rights in US territories—a historic first. While Congress has regularly held hearings addressing issues of political status in US territories, never before has it held a hearing focused specifically on the issue of voting rights and disenfranchisement in these areas.
“One hundred days from now, Americans will go to the polls to elect the next president, one-third of the Senate, and the entire House. But almost 4 million citizens who live in US territories will once again have to sit on the sidelines of American democracy while everyone else has their say,” said Neil Weare, President, and Founder of Equally American, a nonpartisan public interest law organization that works to advance equality and voting rights in US territories. “The idea that in the year 2020 millions of US citizens remain unable to vote simply because of where they live cannot be squared with America’s democratic and constitutional principles,” Weare stated.
“I applaud Chair Fudge and Ranking Member Davis for holding this historic hearing, and I look forward to testifying in support of voting rights for residents of US territories,” Weare added.
The House Subcommittee on Elections will meet virtually at 10:00 am EDT. The first panel will consist of statements by Members of Congress from each territory. Equally American’s President Neil Weare and other witnesses from the territories will participate in the second panel. The hearing may be viewed live here, and more information is available here.
The list of witnesses is as follows:
Mr. John Abramson
Former Supervisor of Election Systems, Virgin Islands of the United States
Mr. Gerard Emanuel
Retired Educator
The Honorable Jenniffer González-Colón
Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico
Dr. Gwen-Marie Moolenaar
President, League of Women Voters of the Virgin Islands
The Honorable Stacey E. Plaskett
Delegate of the US Virgin IslandsPlaskett Bio
The Honorable Michael F. Q. San Nicolas
Delegate of Guam
Neil Weare
President and Founder, Equally American Legal Defense & Education Fund
