Press Releases Archive

Sports Legends Endorse Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act

  “[W]e are united now in urging Congress to exercise its Constitutional responsibility to enact laws that set national standards for the conduct of Federal elections and for decisions that determine election outcomes,” Jerry West, Nick Saban, Paul Tagliabue And Others Write In Letter To Sen. Manchin   In a letter to Senator Joe Manchin […]

D21 Urges Senate To Engage In Extended Debate On Voting Rights

  In a letter today, Democracy 21 urged the 50 Senators who support the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act to “do whatever it takes” to pass the legislation. When Senate proponents “fought for the historic Civil Rights Act of 1964, they recognized the bill was of overriding importance to the country,” according to […]

D21 Statement On Sen. Majority Leader Schumer Setting The Stage To Bring Voting Rights To Senate Floor

Statement of Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer Democracy 21 strongly applauds Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) for his masterful strategy to get the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to the Senate floor for consideration without being blocked by a Republican filibuster. Working with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, […]

LISTEN: Fred Wertheimer On Biden’s Speech, McConnell’s Threats, And “Decision Time” On Voting Rights

      Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer on Background Briefing With Ian Masters on January 11, 2022. (18 minutes)    

Sen. McConnell’s Latest Threats Against Modifying The Filibuster Rules Give New Meaning to “Chutzpah”

Statement of Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell’s latest threats against modifying the filibuster rules give new meaning to the word “chutzpah.” McConnell reportedly said today that if Democrats “nuke” the filibuster, Republicans will act “in ways that are more inconvenient for the majority and this White House then anyone has seen in living […]

UPDATE: D21 Report — The Senate Filibuster, 1806 – 2021

View & Download This Report As A PDF By: Fred Wertheimer, President, Democracy 21  |  UPDATED: January 2022 The United States Senate is facing a decision of historic consequence with the fate of our democracy at stake. Will 50 Senators plus the Vice President be able to pass the Freedom to Vote Act and override […]

The Atlantic: It’s Time For Democrats To Break The Glass

“Democracy is at stake this month, and that is not hyperbole.” – D21 President Fred Wertheimer in The Atlantic “The next few weeks will likely answer the most crucial question that emerged from last year’s insurrection by supporters of Donald Trump: Can one political party defend American democracy on its own?” Ronald Brownstein, senior editor of […]

Wertheimer/Eisen Op-Ed In The Washington Post: Fixing The Electoral Count Act Is No Substitute For Real Election Reform

  No one should fall for the Electoral Count Act “bait & switch,” D21 President Fred Wertheimer and Norman Eisen, President Obama’s ethics czar, write.   With the Senate finally scheduling action to address the national epidemic of voter suppression and election hijacking laws, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and other Republicans have suddenly found an alternative they […]

E.J. Dionne Jr. In The Washington Post: Real Accountability For Jan. 6 Requires Political Reform

 “The Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol was an attempt, through force and violence, to overturn the will of the majority expressed in a free and fair election,” Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne Jr. writes in a new op-ed. “In a well-functioning democratic republic,” he writes, “its anniversary would engender a commitment across party lines to protecting and enhancing […]

D21 Vice President Matt Keller Discusses Status Of Voting Rights Legislation And More In New Interview

  The Surreal News  |  Friday, December 17, 2021   “We’re on the cusp of passing the most transformational reform and voting rights legislation since Watergate,” Democracy 21 Vice President Matt Keller tells Lew Lorini, host of The Surreal News, on his program last week. The Surreal News airs weekly on WSLR-FM in Sarasota, Florida […]