(Reuters) – Golden State Warriors’ guard Stephen Curry said he is on “team democracy” and urged the public to rally lawmakers in support of the Freedom to Vote Act, which is being blocked by Senate Republicans.
Democrats have repeatedly failed to advance the voting rights legislation in the U.S. Senate because the measure does not have the 60 votes needed to overcome a procedural blocking maneuver known as a filibuster.
Nineteen states have enacted 33 different laws that make it harder for citizens to vote in the wake of the historically large turnout in the 2020 election, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.
“We’ve got some work to do,” Curry said in a video released on Thursday by the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition and elections reform group RepresentUs.
“We need everyone to call their senators and tell them you want to see the Freedom to Vote Act passed so that we all can make our voices heard,” the three-time NBA champion and two-time league MVP added.
The National Basketball Association and WNBA were active in turning out the vote in the 2020 election, with 23 franchises utilizing their facilities as polling sites and ballot-drop locations.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles)
