Make Election Day A Holiday, Rep. Anna Eshoo Pushes

PALO ALTO, CA -- Should Election Day be a holiday? That's the affirmative for U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Palo Alto), who joins Virginia Democrat A. Donald McEachin in reintroducing H.R. 294, the lawmaker announced Wednesday.

For a day the American people, candidates and political pundits talk about all year long, it stands to reason for some the day deserves a federal designation.

The premise lies with the right to vote as a fundamental component of the U.S. democracy that seems to get lost in voter turnout, which supporters of the Election Holiday Act claim would be higher if workers had the day off to do it.

U.S. voter turnout is consistently among the lowest of all established democracies around the world, Eshoo's office indicated. A 2014 study found that among those who didn’t vote, 35 percent didn’t have time to do so because of work or school.

“People should not be forced to choose between their job or family and exercising their right to vote,” the congresswoman said. “At a time when our democracy needs to be strengthened, and when many states are restricting access to the ballot box, it’s more important than ever for Congress to reaffirm our commitment to the most fundamental aspect of democracy -- the right to vote. Strong voter turnout is essential to a healthy democracy, and this legislation ensures more voices are heard in the political process.”

McEachin said: “We must do all we can to remove barriers to the ballot box. I fought for voters’ rights by introducing similar legislation during my time as a member of Virginia’s General Assembly."

Reps. Eshoo and McEachin first introduced the Election Day Holiday Act in the 115th Congress with 30 co-sponsors. The Election Day Holiday Act is also included in H.R. 1, the For the People Act, the sweeping reform and anti-corruption package introduced by House Democrats to restore democracy and return political power to the American people, aides say.

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