Senator Klobuchar speaks at the introduction of the For the People Act

The For the People Act is a sweeping package of pro-democracy reforms that aims to make it easier to vote, end the dominance of big money in politics, and ensure that public officials work for the public interest 

The bill serves as Senate companion legislation to H.R. 1 in the U.S. House of Representatives, which passed the House earlier this month

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member of the Senate Rules Committee with oversight jurisdiction over federal elections, joined Senators Tom Udall (D-NM) and Jeff Merkley (D-WA), and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to introduce a sweeping ethics and election reform bill. The For the People Act is a package of pro-democracy reforms that aim to make it easier, not harder, to vote; end the dominance of big money in politics; and ensure that public officials work for the public interest. The bill serves as the Senate companion legislation to H.R. 1 in the U.S. House of Representatives, which passed the House earlier this month.

“At a time when the right to vote is under attack, when foreign adversaries are trying to exploit our divisions and hack our elections, when an unprecedented amount of money from special interests is drowning out the voices of the American people, we need to take bold action to restore Americans’ confidence in our political system. And that’s exactly what the For the People Act does,” Klobuchar said. “My priority since taking over as Ranking Member of the Rules Committee – the Committee with jurisdiction over federal elections – has been to make voting easier and more secure. I am proud to have nearly a dozen legislative provisions included in the legislation that help achieve those goals. Americans want a democracy that works for them—and this bill helps achieve that goal. I’m proud to be introducing it with my colleagues today.” 

Klobuchar has nine legislative provisions included in the legislation that would help to restore Americans’ confidence in our political system and make voting easier and more secure, including:

  • The SAVE Voters Act which to prevent voter registration purges,
  • The Register America to Vote Act which would require automatic voter registration,
  • The Honest Ads Act which would require disclaimers and disclosure for online political ads,
  • Provisions from the Secure Elections Act and the HACK Act, such as mandatory paper ballots and audits,
  • The Stop Foreign Donations Affecting Our Elections Act which would require credit card donations have a U.S. based address,
  • The Same Day Registration Act which would require all states to allow same day voter registration,
  • The Students VOTE Act which would create a pilot program to educate high school students about voting,
  • The PAID Ads Act which would prevent foreign spending on political ads, and
  • The Support our Spouses Act which would make it easier for military spouses to vote.

Throughout her time in the Senate, Klobuchar has been fighting to protect voting rights for all Americans. Last month, Klobuchar and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) introduced the SAVE VOTERs Act to amend the National Voter Registration Act to clarify that a state may not use someone’s failure to vote as reason to remove them as a registered voter. Klobuchar introduced the Register America to Vote Act to ensure that every state implements a secure process to automatically register eligible citizens to vote on their eighteenth birthday. She also introduced the Students Voicing Opinions in Today’s Elections (VOTE) Act to create a pilot program to educate high school seniors about registering to vote and help get them registered and the Same Day Registration Act to require states to allow people to register to vote on the same day as the election. Last March, Klobuchar and Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and John Kennedy (R-LA) introduced the bipartisan Support our Military Spouses Act. This legislation would reduce confusion and ensure military spouses do not have to establish new legal residency after every military reassignment. In 2017, Klobuchar and Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the Automatic Voter Registration Act, which would require states to automatically register eligible voters when they interact with certain state or federal agencies, unless the person declines.

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