HARRISBURG, Oct. 29 – State Rep. Stephen Kinsey, chairman of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus, issued the following statement opposing S.B. 421, which passed the House today. “All Americans have a fundamental right to vote, so any election reform we pass should make it easier for people to cast their votes. Unfortunately, we have a long legacy of doing the opposite in this country. As legislators, we should avoid any effort to make voting harder for disadvantaged communities. “By taking away the convenience of straight ticket voting, the process would be longer and wait times would extend for Pennsylvanians who already must fit voting into their busy schedules. It is going to heavily impact whether our most vulnerable citizens are able to participate at the polls,” Kinsey said. Kinsey was joined by other members of the PLBC who also voiced concerns about S.B 421. Rep. Donna Bullock, D-Phila., agreed that this bill is an act of voter suppression that will undoubtedly disproportionately affect people of color, especially in urban centers such as Philadelphia. “I am astounded by Republicans’ efforts to limit the freedom of choice that voters had by eliminating straight party voting, to create confusion at the polls by purging thousands of voters from the registry and to offer hollow voting reforms without resources to implement them. I find the audacity of those Republicans to try to Read more