Biden To Discuss Voting Rights, Ballot Access In Philly Speech

PHILADELPHIA, PA – President Joe Biden is expected to discuss voting rights and ballot access across the country in a speech Tuesday afternoon at the National Constitution Center.

In a press briefing on Monday, White House Press Secretary Jenn Psaki said Biden will "lay out the moral case" against voter suppression and will commit to protecting.the rights of Americans to vote.

"He'll call out – the greatest irony of the Big Lie is that no election in our history has met such a high standard, with over 80 judges, including those appointed by his predecessor, throwing out all challenges," Psaki said.

Psaki said Biden also plans to "decry efforts to strip the right to vote as authoritarian and anti-American."

Biden will argue that it is necessary to pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and emphasize that voting is a fundamental right, Psaki said.

"He is going to be calling on Americans to make sure they are informed, make sure they are informing their neighbors, and make sure they are fighting efforts to pass restrictive laws in their states."

Biden's speech will take place at 2:50 p.m.

Voting rights and ballot access have been at the forefront of legislative efforts across the country. In June, the Michigan Senate votedto pass three bills expanding what is required of voters in order to confirm their identities before their ballots are counted.

Senate Bills 303 and 304 remove the option to vote by affidavit if a voter doesn't have or forgets a suitable ID on Election Day. Senate Bill 285 requires voters to submit ID information when applying for an absentee ballot application. They were all approved through party lines.

Last week, Massachusetts GOP Chairman Jim Lyons announced an effort to allow voters to decide whether they'll need to present identification to cast ballots. Lyons said the only way to get voter IDs into the local conversation is to get in on the 2022 ballot.