Executive Council Statement
Protect Voting Rights
… laws. The VRA enforces the Constitution's 15th Amendment guarantee that "the rights of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged … on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." The Voting Rights Act was designed to prevent physical intimidation, voter harassment, the poll tax, language barriers, literacy tests, racial gerrymandering, … fair and effective representation for all Americans. The AFL-CIO and its affiliates wholeheartedly support and will work to secure re-authorization of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. …