II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4 

To amend the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to revise the criteria for determining 

which States and political subdivisions are subject to section 4 of the 

Act, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 29, 2024 

Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. WARNOCK, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, 

Ms. BUTLER, Mr. SCHUMER, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. REED, Mr. 

CARPER, Ms. STABENOW, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. CARDIN, 

Mr. SANDERS, Mr. BROWN, Mr. CASEY, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. TESTER, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. WARNER, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. 

BENNET, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. COONS, Mr. SCHATZ, Ms. BALDWIN, 

Mr. MURPHY, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. KING, Mr. KAINE, Ms. 

WARREN, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. PETERS, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Ms. 

DUCKWORTH, Ms. HASSAN, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Ms. SMITH, Ms. 

SINEMA, Ms. ROSEN, Mr. KELLY, Mr. LUJA ́N, Mr. HICKENLOOPER, Mr. 

PADILLA, Mr. OSSOFF, Mr. WELCH, and Mr. FETTERMAN) introduced 

the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 

on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to revise the 

criteria for determining which States and political subdivisions are subject to section 4 of the Act, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
2 

•S 4 IS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘John R. Lewis Voting 

3 Rights Advancement Act of 2024’’. 

4 TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE 

5 VOTING RIGHTS ACT 

6 SEC. 101. VOTE DILUTION, DENIAL, AND ABRIDGMENT 

7 CLAIMS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2(a) of the Voting Rights 

9 Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301(a)) is amended— 

10 (1) by inserting after ‘‘applied by any State or 

11 political subdivision’’ the following: ‘‘for the purpose 

12 of, or’’; and 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘as provided in subsection (b)’’ 

14 and inserting ‘‘as provided in subsection (b), (c), (d), 

15 or (e)’’. 

16 (b) VOTE DILUTION.—Section 2 of such Act (52 

17 U.S.C. 10301), as amended by subsection (a), is further 

18 amended by striking subsection (b) and inserting the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(b) A violation of subsection (a) for vote dilution is 

21 established if, based on the totality of circumstances, it 

22 is shown that the political processes leading to nomination 

23 or election in the State or political subdivision are not 

24 equally open to participation by members of a class of citi25 zens protected by subsection (a) in that its members have 

26 less opportunity than other members of the electorate to 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
3 

•S 4 IS

1 participate in the political process and to elect representa2 tives of their choice. The extent to which members of a 

3 protected class have been elected to office in the State or 

4 political subdivision is one circumstance which may be 

5 considered: Provided, That nothing in this section estab6 lishes a right to have members of a protected class elected 

7 in numbers equal to their proportion in the population. 

8 The legal standard articulated in Thornburg v. Gingles, 

9 478 U.S. 30 (1986), governs claims under this subsection. 

10 For purposes of this subsection a class of citizens pro11 tected by subsection (a) may include a cohesive coalition 

12 of members of different racial or language minority 

13 groups.’’. 

14 (c) VOTE DENIAL OR ABRIDGEMENT.—Section 2 of 

15 such Act (52 U.S.C. 10301), as amended by subsections 

16 (a) and (b), is further amended by adding at the end the 

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(c)(1) A violation of subsection (a) for vote denial 

19 or abridgment is established if the challenged standard, 

20 practice, or procedure imposes a discriminatory burden on 

21 members of a class of citizens protected by subsection (a), 

22 meaning that— 

23 ‘‘(A) members of the protected class face great24 er difficulty in complying with the standard, pracVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:40 Mar 01, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
4 

•S 4 IS

1 tice, or procedure, considering the totality of the cir2 cumstances; and 

3 ‘‘(B) such greater difficulty is, at least in part, 

4 caused by or linked to social and historical condi5 tions that have produced or currently produce dis6 crimination against members of the protected class. 

7 ‘‘(2) The challenged standard, practice, or procedure 

8 need only be a but-for cause of the discriminatory burden 

9 or perpetuate a pre-existing discriminatory burden. 

10 ‘‘(3)(A) The totality of the circumstances for consid11 eration relative to a violation of subsection (a) for vote 

12 denial or abridgment shall include the following factors, 

13 which, individually and collectively, show how a voting 

14 standard, practice, or procedure can function to amplify 

15 the effects of past or present racial discrimination: 

16 ‘‘(i) The history of official voting-related dis17 crimination in the State or political subdivision. 

18 ‘‘(ii) The extent to which voting in the elections 

19 of the State or political subdivision is racially polar20 ized. 

21 ‘‘(iii) The extent to which the State or political 

22 subdivision has used unduly burdensome photo23 graphic voter identification requirements, documen24 tary proof of citizenship requirements, documentary 

25 proof of residence requirements, or other voting 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
5 

•S 4 IS

1 standards, practices, or procedures beyond those re2 quired by Federal law that may impair the ability of 

3 members of the protected class to participate fully in 

4 the political process. 

5 ‘‘(iv) The extent to which members of the pro6 tected class bear the effects of discrimination in 

7 areas such as education, employment, and health, 

8 which hinder the ability of those members to partici9 pate effectively in the political process. 

10 ‘‘(v) The use of overt or subtle racial appeals ei11 ther in political campaigns or surrounding the adop12 tion or maintenance of the challenged standard, 

13 practice, or procedure. 

14 ‘‘(vi) The extent to which members of the pro15 tected class have been elected to public office in the 

16 jurisdiction, except that the fact that the protected 

17 class is too small to elect candidates of its choice 

18 shall not defeat a claim of vote denial or abridgment 

19 under this section. 

20 ‘‘(vii) Whether there is a lack of responsiveness 

21 on the part of elected officials to the particularized 

22 needs of members of the protected class. 

23 ‘‘(viii) Whether the policy underlying the State 

24 or political subdivision’s use of the challenged quali25 fication, prerequisite, standard, practice, or proceVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:40 Mar 01, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
6 

•S 4 IS

1 dure has a tenuous connection to that qualification, 

2 prerequisite, standard, practice, or procedure. 

3 ‘‘(B) A particular combination or number of 

4 factors under subparagraph (A) shall not be re5 quired to establish a violation of subsection (a) for 

6 vote denial or abridgment. 

7 ‘‘(C) The totality of the circumstances for con8 sideration relative to a violation of subsection (a) for 

9 vote denial or abridgment shall not include the fol10 lowing factors: 

11 ‘‘(i) The total number or share of members of 

12 a protected class on whom a challenged standard, 

13 practice, or procedure does not impose a material 

14 burden. 

15 ‘‘(ii) The degree to which the challenged stand16 ard, practice, or procedure has a long pedigree or 

17 was in widespread use at some earlier date. 

18 ‘‘(iii) The use of an identical or similar stand19 ard, practice, or procedure in other States or polit20 ical subdivisions. 

21 ‘‘(iv) The availability of other forms of voting 

22 unimpacted by the challenged standard, practice, or 

23 procedure to all members of the electorate, including 

24 members of the protected class, unless the State or 

25 political subdivision is simultaneously expanding 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
7 

•S 4 IS

1 those other standards, practices, or procedures to 

2 eliminate any disproportionate burden imposed by 

3 the challenged standard, practice, or procedure. 

4 ‘‘(v) A prophylactic impact on potential criminal 

5 activity by individual voters, if such crimes have not 

6 occurred in the State or political subdivision in sub7 stantial numbers. 

8 ‘‘(vi) Mere invocation of interests in voter con9 fidence or prevention of fraud.’’. 

10 (d) INTENDED VOTE DILUTION OR VOTE DENIAL OR

11 ABRIDGMENT.—Section 2 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10301), 

12 as amended by subsections (a), (b), and (c) is further 

13 amended by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(d)(1) A violation of subsection (a) is also estab15 lished if a challenged qualification, prerequisite, standard, 

16 practice, or procedure is intended, at least in part, to di17 lute the voting strength of a protected class or to deny 

18 or abridge the right of any citizen of the United States 

19 to vote on account of race, color, or in contravention of 

20 the guarantees set forth in section 4(f)(2). 

21 ‘‘(2) Discrimination on account of race or color, or 

22 in contravention of the guarantees set forth in section 

23 4(f)(2), need only be one purpose of a qualification, pre24 requisite, standard, practice, or procedure in order to es25 tablish a violation of subsection (a), as described in this 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
8 

•S 4 IS

1 subsection. A qualification, prerequisite, standard, prac2 tice, or procedure intended to dilute the voting strength 

3 of a protected class or to make it more difficult for mem4 bers of a protected class to cast a ballot that will be count5 ed constitutes a violation of subsection (a), as described 

6 in this subsection, even if an additional purpose of the 

7 qualification, prerequisite, standard, practice, or proce8 dure is to benefit a particular political party or group. 

9 ‘‘(3) Recent context, including actions by official deci10 sionmakers in prior years or in other contexts preceding 

11 the decision responsible for the challenged qualification, 

12 prerequisite, standard, practice, or procedure, and includ13 ing actions by predecessor government actors or individual 

14 members of a decisionmaking body, may be relevant to 

15 making a determination about a violation of subsection 

16 (a), as described under this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(4) A claim that a violation of subsection (a) has 

18 occurred, as described under this subsection, shall require 

19 proof of a discriminatory impact but shall not require 

20 proof of violation of subsection (b) or (c).’’. 

21 SEC. 102. RETROGRESSION. 

22 Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

23 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), as amended by section 101 of this 

24 Act, is further amended by adding at the end the fol25 lowing: 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
9 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(e) A violation of subsection (a) is established when 

2 a State or political subdivision enacts or seeks to admin3 ister any qualification or prerequisite to voting or stand4 ard, practice, or procedure with respect to voting in any 

5 election that has the purpose of or will have the effect 

6 of diminishing the ability of any citizens of the United 

7 States on account of race or color, or in contravention of 

8 the guarantees set forth in section 4(f)(2), to participate 

9 in the electoral process or elect their preferred candidates 

10 of choice. This subsection applies to any action taken on 

11 or after January 1, 2021, by a State or political subdivi12 sion to enact or seek to administer any such qualification 

13 or prerequisite to voting or standard, practice or proce14 dure. 

15 ‘‘(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (e), 

16 final decisions of the United States District Court of the 

17 District of Columbia on applications or petitions by States 

18 or political subdivisions for preclearance under section 5 

19 of any changes in voting prerequisites, standards, prac20 tices, or procedures, supersede the provisions of subsection 

21 (e).’’. 

22 SEC. 103. VIOLATIONS TRIGGERING AUTHORITY OF COURT 

23 TO RETAIN JURISDICTION. 

24 (a) TYPES OF VIOLATIONS.—Section 3(c) of the Vot25 ing Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10302(c)) is amended 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
10 

•S 4 IS

1 by striking ‘‘violations of the fourteenth or fifteenth 

2 amendment’’ and inserting ‘‘violations of the 14th or 15th 

3 Amendment, violations of this Act, or violations of any 

4 Federal law that prohibits discrimination in voting on the 

5 basis of race, color, or membership in a language minority 

6 group,’’. 

7 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 3(a) of 

8 such Act (52 U.S.C. 10302(a)) is amended by striking 

9 ‘‘violations of the fourteenth or fifteenth amendment’’ and 

10 inserting ‘‘violations of the 14th or 15th Amendment, vio11 lations of this Act, or violations of any Federal law that 

12 prohibits discrimination in voting on the basis of race, 

13 color, or membership in a language minority group,’’. 

14 SEC. 104. CRITERIA FOR COVERAGE OF STATES AND POLIT15 ICAL SUBDIVISIONS. 

16 (a) DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL

17 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO SECTION 4(a).— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 4(b) of the Voting 

19 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10303(b)) is amend20 ed to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(b) DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL

22 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO REQUIREMENTS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) EXISTENCE OF VOTING RIGHTS VIOLA24 TIONS DURING PREVIOUS 25 YEARS.— 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
11 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(A) STATEWIDE APPLICATION.—Sub2 section (a) applies with respect to a State and 

3 all political subdivisions within the State during 

4 a calendar year if— 

5 ‘‘(i) fifteen or more voting rights vio6 lations occurred in the State during the 

7 previous 25 calendar years; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) ten or more voting rights viola9 tions occurred in the State during the pre10 vious 25 calendar years, at least one of 

11 which was committed by the State itself 

12 (as opposed to a political subdivision with13 in the State). 

14 ‘‘(B) APPLICATION TO SPECIFIC POLITICAL

15 SUBDIVISIONS.—Subsection (a) applies with re16 spect to a political subdivision as a separate 

17 unit during a calendar year if three or more 

18 voting rights violations occurred in the subdivi19 sion during the previous 25 calendar years. 

20 ‘‘(2) PERIOD OF APPLICATION.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

22 subparagraph (B), if, pursuant to paragraph 

23 (1), subsection (a) applies with respect to a 

24 State or political subdivision during a calendar 

25 year, subsection (a) shall apply with respect to 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
12 

•S 4 IS

1 such State or political subdivision for the pe2 riod— 

3 ‘‘(i) that begins on January 1 of the 

4 year in which subsection (a) applies; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) that ends on the date which is 10 

6 years after the date described in clause (i). 

7 ‘‘(B) NO FURTHER APPLICATION AFTER

8 DECLARATORY JUDGMENT.— 

9 ‘‘(i) STATES.—If a State obtains a de10 claratory judgment under subsection (a), 

11 and the judgment remains in effect, sub12 section (a) shall no longer apply to such 

13 State and all political subdivisions in the 

14 State pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) unless, 

15 after the issuance of the declaratory judg16 ment, paragraph (1)(A) applies to the 

17 State solely on the basis of voting rights 

18 violations occurring after the issuance of 

19 the declaratory judgment. 

20 ‘‘(ii) POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS.—If a 

21 political subdivision obtains a declaratory 

22 judgment under subsection (a), and the 

23 judgment remains in effect, subsection (a) 

24 shall no longer apply to such political sub25 division pursuant to paragraph (1), includVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
13 

•S 4 IS

1 ing pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) (relating 

2 to the statewide application of subsection 

3 (a)), unless, after the issuance of the de4 claratory judgment, paragraph (1)(B) ap5 plies to the political subdivision solely on 

6 the basis of voting rights violations occur7 ring after the issuance of the declaratory 

8 judgment. 

9 ‘‘(3) DETERMINATION OF VOTING RIGHTS VIO10 LATION.—For purposes of paragraph (1), a voting 

11 rights violation occurred in a State or political sub12 division if any of the following applies: 

13 ‘‘(A) JUDICIAL RELIEF; VIOLATION OF

14 THE 14TH OR 15TH AMENDMENT.—Any final 

15 judgment (that was not reversed on appeal) oc16 curred, in which the plaintiff prevailed and in 

17 which any court of the United States deter18 mined that a denial or abridgement of the right 

19 of any citizen of the United States to vote on 

20 account of race, color, or membership in a lan21 guage minority group occurred, or that a voting 

22 qualification or prerequisite to voting or stand23 ard, practice, or procedure with respect to vot24 ing created an undue burden on the right to 

25 vote in connection with a claim that the law unVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
14 

•S 4 IS

1 duly burdened voters of a particular race, color, 

2 or language minority group, in violation of the 

3 14th or 15th Amendment to the Constitution of 

4 the United States, anywhere within the State or 

5 subdivision. 

6 ‘‘(B) JUDICIAL RELIEF; VIOLATIONS OF

7 THIS ACT.—Any final judgment (that was not 

8 reversed on appeal) occurred in which the plain9 tiff prevailed and in which any court of the 

10 United States determined that a voting quali11 fication or prerequisite to voting or standard, 

12 practice, or procedure with respect to voting 

13 was imposed or applied or would have been im14 posed or applied anywhere within the State or 

15 subdivision in a manner that resulted or would 

16 have resulted in a denial or abridgement of the 

17 right of any citizen of the United States to vote 

18 on account of race, color, or membership in a 

19 language minority group, in violation of sub20 section (e) or (f) or section 2, 201, or 203. 

21 ‘‘(C) FINAL JUDGMENT; DENIAL OF DE22 CLARATORY JUDGMENT.—In a final judgment 

23 (that was not been reversed on appeal), any 

24 court of the United States has denied the re25 quest of the State or subdivision for a declaraVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
15 

•S 4 IS

1 tory judgment under section 3(c) or section 5, 

2 and thereby prevented a voting qualification or 

3 prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or 

4 procedure with respect to voting from being en5 forced anywhere within the State or subdivision. 

6 ‘‘(D) OBJECTION BY THE ATTORNEY GEN7 ERAL.—The Attorney General has interposed 

8 an objection under section 3(c) or section 5, 

9 and thereby prevented a voting qualification or 

10 prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or 

11 procedure with respect to voting from being en12 forced anywhere within the State or subdivision. 

13 A violation under this subparagraph has not oc14 curred where an objection has been withdrawn 

15 by the Attorney General, unless the withdrawal 

16 was in response to a change in the law or prac17 tice that served as the basis of the objection. A 

18 violation under this subparagraph has not oc19 curred where the objection is based solely on a 

20 State or political subdivision’s failure to comply 

21 with a procedural process that would not other22 wise count as an independent violation of this 

23 Act. 

24 ‘‘(E) CONSENT DECREE, SETTLEMENT, OR

25 OTHER AGREEMENT.— 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
16 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(i) AGREEMENT.—A consent decree, 

2 settlement, or other agreement was adopt3 ed or entered by a court of the United 

4 States that contains an admission of liabil5 ity by the defendants, which resulted in the 

6 alteration or abandonment of a voting 

7 practice anywhere in the territory of such 

8 State or subdivision that was challenged on 

9 the ground that the practice denied or 

10 abridged the right of any citizen of the 

11 United States to vote on account of race, 

12 color, or membership in a language minor13 ity group in violation of subsection (e) or 

14 (f) or section 2, 201, or 203, or the 14th 

15 or 15th Amendment. 

16 ‘‘(ii) INDEPENDENT VIOLATIONS.—A 

17 voluntary extension or continuation of a 

18 consent decree, settlement, or agreement 

19 described in clause (i) shall not count as 

20 an independent violation under this sub21 paragraph. Any other extension or modi22 fication of such a consent decree, settle23 ment, or agreement, if the consent decree, 

24 settlement, or agreement has been in place 

25 for ten years or longer, shall count as an 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
17 

•S 4 IS

1 independent violation under this subpara2 graph. If a court of the United States 

3 finds that a consent decree, settlement, or 

4 agreement described in clause (i) itself de5 nied or abridged the right of any citizen of 

6 the United States to vote on account of 

7 race, color, or membership in a language 

8 minority group, violated subsection (e) or 

9 (f) or section 2, 201, or 203, or created an 

10 undue burden on the right to vote in con11 nection with a claim that the consent de12 cree, settlement, or other agreement un13 duly burdened voters of a particular race, 

14 color, or language minority group, that 

15 finding shall count as an independent vio16 lation under this subparagraph. 

17 ‘‘(F) MULTIPLE VIOLATIONS.—Each in18 stance in which a voting qualification or pre19 requisite to voting or standard, practice, or pro20 cedure with respect to voting, including each re21 districting plan, is found to be a violation by a 

22 court of the United States pursuant to subpara23 graph (A) or (B), or prevented from being en24 forced pursuant to subparagraph (C) or (D), or 

25 altered or abandoned pursuant to subparagraph 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
18 

•S 4 IS

1 (E) shall count as an independent violation 

2 under this paragraph. Within a redistricting 

3 plan, each violation under this paragraph found 

4 to discriminate against any group of voters 

5 based on race, color, or language minority 

6 group shall count as an independent violation 

7 under this paragraph. 

8 ‘‘(4) TIMING OF DETERMINATIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATIONS OF VOTING RIGHTS

10 VIOLATIONS.—As early as practicable during 

11 each calendar year, the Attorney General shall 

12 make the determinations required by this sub13 section, including updating the list of voting 

14 rights violations occurring in each State and po15 litical subdivision for the previous calendar 

16 year. 

17 ‘‘(B) EFFECTIVE UPON PUBLICATION IN

18 FEDERAL REGISTER.—A determination or cer19 tification of the Attorney General under this 

20 section or under section 8 or 13 shall be effec21 tive upon publication in the Federal Register.’’. 

22 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 4(a) 

23 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10303(a)) is amended— 

24 (A) in paragraph (1), in the first sentence 

25 of the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
19 

•S 4 IS

1 striking ‘‘any State with respect to which’’ and 

2 all that follows through ‘‘unless’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘any State to which this subsection applies dur4 ing a calendar year pursuant to determinations 

5 made under subsection (b), or in any political 

6 subdivision of such State (as such subdivision 

7 existed on the date such determinations were 

8 made with respect to such State), though such 

9 determinations were not made with respect to 

10 such subdivision as a separate unit, or in any 

11 political subdivision with respect to which this 

12 subsection applies during a calendar year pur13 suant to determinations made with respect to 

14 such subdivision as a separate unit under sub15 section (b), unless’’; 

16 (B) in paragraph (1), in the matter pre17 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking the second 

18 sentence; 

19 (C) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘(in 

20 the case of a State or subdivision seeking a de21 claratory judgment under the second sentence 

22 of this subsection)’’; 

23 (D) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘(in 

24 the case of a State or subdivision seeking a deVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
20 

•S 4 IS

1 claratory judgment under the second sentence 

2 of this subsection)’’; 

3 (E) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘(in the 

4 case of a State or subdivision seeking a declara5 tory judgment under the second sentence of this 

6 subsection)’’; 

7 (F) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘(in the 

8 case of a State or subdivision which sought a 

9 declaratory judgment under the second sentence 

10 of this subsection)’’; 

11 (G) by striking paragraphs (7) and (8); 

12 and 

13 (H) by redesignating paragraph (9) as 

14 paragraph (7). 

15 (b) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF MEMBERS OF

16 LANGUAGE MINORITY GROUPS.—Section 4(a)(1) of such 

17 Act (52 U.S.C. 10303(a)(1)), as amended by subsection 

18 (a), is further amended, in the first sentence, by striking 

19 ‘‘race or color,’’ and inserting ‘‘race or color, or in con20 travention of the guarantees of subsection (f)(2),’’. 

21 (c) FACILITATING BAILOUT.—Section 4(a) of the 

22 Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10303(a)), as 

23 amended by subsection (a), is further amended— 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
21 

•S 4 IS

1 (1) by striking paragraph (1)(C) and redesig2 nating subparagraphs (D) through (F) as subpara3 graphs (C) through (E), respectively; 

4 (2) by inserting at the beginning of paragraph 

5 (7), as redesignated by subsection (a)(2)(H), the fol6 lowing: ‘‘Any plaintiff seeking a declaratory judg7 ment under this subsection on the grounds that the 

8 plaintiff meets the requirements of paragraph (1) 

9 may request that the Attorney General consent to 

10 entry of judgment.’’; and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(8) If a political subdivision is subject to the applica13 tion of this subsection, due to the applicability of sub14 section (b)(1)(A), the political subdivision may seek a de15 claratory judgment under this section if the subdivision 

16 demonstrates that the subdivision meets the criteria estab17 lished by the subparagraphs of paragraph (1), for the 10 

18 years preceding the date on which subsection (a) applied 

19 to the political subdivision under subsection (b)(1)(A). 

20 ‘‘(9) If a political subdivision was not subject to the 

21 application of this subsection by reason of a declaratory 

22 judgment entered prior to the date of enactment of the 

23 John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2024, 

24 and is not, subsequent to that date of enactment, subject 

25 to the application of this subsection under subsection 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
22 

•S 4 IS

1 (b)(1)(B), then that political subdivision shall not be sub2 ject to the requirements of this subsection.’’. 

3 SEC. 105. DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL SUB4 DIVISIONS SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE FOR 

5 COVERED PRACTICES. 

6 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et 

7 seq.) is further amended by inserting after section 4 the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 4A. DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL 

10 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE 

11 FOR COVERED PRACTICES. 

12 ‘‘(a) PRACTICE-BASED PRECLEARANCE.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State and each polit14 ical subdivision shall— 

15 ‘‘(A) identify any newly enacted or adopted 

16 law, regulation, or policy that includes a voting 

17 qualification or prerequisite to voting, or a 

18 standard, practice, or procedure with respect to 

19 voting, that is a covered practice described in 

20 subsection (b); and 

21 ‘‘(B) ensure that no such covered practice 

22 is implemented unless or until the State or po23 litical subdivision, as the case may be, complies 

24 with subsection (c). 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
23 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATIONS OF CHARACTERISTICS

2 OF VOTING-AGE POPULATION.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As early as prac4 ticable during each calendar year, the Attorney 

5 General, in consultation with the Director of 

6 the Bureau of the Census and the heads of 

7 other relevant offices of the government, shall 

8 make the determinations required by this sec9 tion regarding voting-age populations and the 

10 characteristics of such populations, and shall 

11 publish a list of the States and political subdivi12 sions to which a voting-age population char13 acteristic described in subsection (b) applies. 

14 ‘‘(B) PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REG15 ISTER.—A determination (including a certifi16 cation) of the Attorney General under this 

17 paragraph shall be effective upon publication in 

18 the Federal Register. 

19 ‘‘(b) COVERED PRACTICES.—To assure that the right 

20 of citizens of the United States to vote is not denied or 

21 abridged on account of race, color, or membership in a 

22 language minority group as a result of the implementation 

23 of certain qualifications or prerequisites to voting, or 

24 standards, practices, or procedures with respect to voting, 

25 newly adopted in a State or political subdivision, the folVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
24 

•S 4 IS

1 lowing shall be covered practices subject to the require2 ments described in subsection (a): 

3 ‘‘(1) CHANGES TO METHOD OF ELECTION.— 

4 Any change to the method of election— 

5 ‘‘(A) to add seats elected at-large in a 

6 State or political subdivision where— 

7 ‘‘(i) two or more racial groups or lan8 guage minority groups each represent 20 

9 percent or more of the voting-age popu10 lation in the State or political subdivision, 

11 respectively; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) a single language minority group 

13 represents 20 percent or more of the vot14 ing-age population on Indian lands located 

15 in whole or in part in the State or political 

16 subdivision; or 

17 ‘‘(B) to convert one or more seats elected 

18 from a single-member district to one or more 

19 at-large seats or seats from a multi-member 

20 district in a State or political subdivision 

21 where— 

22 ‘‘(i) two or more racial groups or lan23 guage minority groups each represent 20 

24 percent or more of the voting-age popuVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
25 

•S 4 IS

1 lation in the State or political subdivision, 

2 respectively; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) a single language minority group 

4 represents 20 percent or more of the vot5 ing-age population on Indian lands located 

6 in whole or in part in the State or political 

7 subdivision. 

8 ‘‘(2) CHANGES TO POLITICAL SUBDIVISION

9 BOUNDARIES.—Any change or series of changes 

10 within a year to the boundaries of a political subdivi11 sion that reduces by 3 or more percentage points the 

12 percentage of the political subdivision’s voting-age 

13 population that is comprised of members of a single 

14 racial group or language minority group in the polit15 ical subdivision where— 

16 ‘‘(A) two or more racial groups or lan17 guage minority groups each represent 20 per18 cent or more of the political subdivision’s vot19 ing-age population; or 

20 ‘‘(B) a single language minority group rep21 resents 20 percent or more of the voting-age 

22 population on Indian lands located in whole or 

23 in part in the political subdivision. 

24 ‘‘(3) CHANGES THROUGH REDISTRICTING.— 

25 Any change to the boundaries of districts for FedVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
26 

•S 4 IS

1 eral, State, or local elections in a State or political 

2 subdivision where any racial group or language mi3 nority group that is not the largest racial group or 

4 language minority group in the jurisdiction and that 

5 represents 15 percent or more of the State or polit6 ical subdivision’s voting-age population experiences a 

7 population increase of at least 20 percent of its vot8 ing-age population, over the preceding decade (as 

9 calculated by the Bureau of the Census under the 

10 most recent decennial census), in the jurisdiction. 

11 ‘‘(4) CHANGES IN DOCUMENTATION OR QUALI12 FICATIONS TO VOTE.—Any change to requirements 

13 for documentation or proof of identity to vote or reg14 ister to vote in elections for Federal, State, or local 

15 offices that will exceed or be more stringent than 

16 such requirements under State law on the day before 

17 the date of enactment of the John R. Lewis Voting 

18 Rights Advancement Act of 2024. 

19 ‘‘(5) CHANGES TO MULTILINGUAL VOTING MA20 TERIALS.—Any change that reduces multilingual 

21 voting materials or alters the manner in which such 

22 materials are provided or distributed, where no simi23 lar reduction or alteration occurs in materials pro24 vided in English for such election. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
27 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(6) CHANGES THAT REDUCE, CONSOLIDATE, 

2 OR RELOCATE VOTING LOCATIONS, OR REDUCE VOT3 ING OPPORTUNITIES.—Any change that reduces, 

4 consolidates, or relocates voting locations in elections 

5 for Federal, State, or local office, including early, 

6 absentee, and election-day voting locations, or re7 duces days or hours of in-person voting on any Sun8 day during a period occurring prior to the date of 

9 an election for Federal, State, or local office during 

10 which voters may cast ballots in such election, or 

11 prohibits the provision of food or non-alcoholic drink 

12 to persons waiting to vote in an election for Federal, 

13 State, or local office, except where the provision 

14 would violate prohibitions on expenditures to influ15 ence voting, if the location change, reduction in days 

16 or hours, or prohibition applies— 

17 ‘‘(A) in one or more census tracts in which 

18 two or more language minority groups or racial 

19 groups each represent 20 percent or more of 

20 the voting-age population; or 

21 ‘‘(B) on Indian lands in which at least 20 

22 percent of the voting-age population belongs to 

23 a single language minority group. 

24 ‘‘(7) NEW LIST MAINTENANCE PROCESS.—Any 

25 change to the maintenance process for voter regVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
28 

•S 4 IS

1 istration lists that adds a new basis for removal 

2 from the list of active voters registered to vote in 

3 elections for Federal, State, or local office, or that 

4 incorporates new sources of information in deter5 mining a voter’s eligibility to vote in elections for 

6 Federal, State, or local office, if such a change 

7 would have a statistically significant disparate im8 pact, concerning the removal from voter rolls, on 

9 members of racial groups or language minority 

10 groups that constitute greater than 5 percent of the 

11 voting-age population— 

12 ‘‘(A) in the case of a political subdivision 

13 imposing such change if— 

14 ‘‘(i) two or more racial groups or lan15 guage minority groups each represent 20 

16 percent or more of the voting-age popu17 lation of the political subdivision; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) a single language minority group 

19 represents 20 percent or more of the vot20 ing-age population on Indian lands located 

21 in whole or in part in the political subdivi22 sion; or 

23 ‘‘(B) in the case of a State imposing such 

24 change, if two or more racial groups or lanVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
29 

•S 4 IS

1 guage minority groups each represent 20 per2 cent or more of the voting-age population of— 

3 ‘‘(i) the State; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) a political subdivision in the 

5 State, except that the requirements under 

6 subsections (a) and (c) shall apply only 

7 with respect to each such political subdivi8 sion individually. 

9 ‘‘(c) PRECLEARANCE.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

11 ‘‘(A) ACTION.—Whenever a State or polit12 ical subdivision with respect to which the re13 quirements set forth in subsection (a) are in ef14 fect shall enact, adopt, or seek to implement 

15 any covered practice described under subsection 

16 (b), such State or subdivision may institute an 

17 action in the United States District Court for 

18 the District of Columbia for a declaratory judg19 ment that such covered practice neither has the 

20 purpose nor will have the effect of denying or 

21 abridging the right to vote on account of race, 

22 color, or membership in a language minority 

23 group, and unless and until the court enters 

24 such judgment such covered practice shall not 

25 be implemented. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
30 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(B) SUBMISSION TO ATTORNEY GEN2 ERAL.— 

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 

4 subparagraph (A), such covered practice 

5 may be implemented without such pro6 ceeding if the covered practice has been 

7 submitted by the chief legal officer or other 

8 appropriate official of such State or sub9 division to the Attorney General and the 

10 Attorney General has not interposed an ob11 jection within 60 days after such submis12 sion, or upon good cause shown, to facili13 tate an expedited approval within 60 days 

14 after such submission, the Attorney Gen15 eral has affirmatively indicated that such 

16 objection will not be made. For purposes of 

17 determining whether expedited consider18 ation of approval is required under this 

19 subparagraph or section 5(a), an exigency 

20 such as a natural disaster, that requires a 

21 change in a voting qualification or pre22 requisite to voting or standard, practice, or 

23 procedure with respect to voting during the 

24 period of 30 days before a Federal election, 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
31 

•S 4 IS

1 shall be considered to be good cause re2 quiring that expedited consideration. 

3 ‘‘(ii) EFFECT OF INDICATION.—Nei4 ther an affirmative indication by the Attor5 ney General that no objection will be made, 

6 nor the Attorney General’s failure to ob7 ject, nor a declaratory judgment entered 

8 under this subsection shall bar a subse9 quent action to enjoin implementation of 

10 such covered practice. In the event the At11 torney General affirmatively indicates that 

12 no objection will be made within the 60- 

13 day period following receipt of a submis14 sion, the Attorney General may reserve the 

15 right to reexamine the submission if addi16 tional information comes to the Attorney 

17 General’s attention during the remainder 

18 of the 60-day period which would otherwise 

19 require objection in accordance with this 

20 subsection. 

21 ‘‘(C) COURT.—Any action under this sub22 section shall be heard and determined by a 

23 court of three judges in accordance with the 

24 provisions of section 2284 of title 28, United 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
32 

•S 4 IS

1 States Code, and any appeal shall lie to the Su2 preme Court. 

3 ‘‘(2) DENYING OR ABRIDGING THE RIGHT TO

4 VOTE.—Any covered practice described in subsection 

5 (b) that has the purpose of or will have the effect 

6 of diminishing the ability of any citizens of the 

7 United States on account of race, color, or member8 ship in a language minority group, to elect their pre9 ferred candidates of choice denies or abridges the 

10 right to vote within the meaning of paragraph (1). 

11 ‘‘(3) PURPOSE DEFINED.—The term ‘purpose’ 

12 in paragraphs (1) and (2) shall include any discrimi13 natory purpose. 

14 ‘‘(4) PURPOSE OF PARAGRAPH (2).—The pur15 pose of paragraph (2) is to protect the ability of 

16 such citizens to elect their preferred candidates of 

17 choice. 

18 ‘‘(d) ENFORCEMENT.—The Attorney General or any 

19 aggrieved citizen may file an action in a district court of 

20 the United States to compel any State or political subdivi21 sion to satisfy the obligations set forth in this section. 

22 Such an action shall be heard and determined by a court 

23 of three judges under section 2284 of title 28, United 

24 States Code. In any such action, the court shall provide 

25 as a remedy that implementation of any voting qualificaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
33 

•S 4 IS

1 tion or prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or 

2 procedure with respect to voting, that is the subject of the 

3 action under this subsection be enjoined unless the court 

4 determines that— 

5 ‘‘(1) the voting qualification or prerequisite to 

6 voting, or standard, practice, or procedure with re7 spect to voting, is not a covered practice described 

8 in subsection (b); or 

9 ‘‘(2) the State or political subdivision has com10 plied with subsection (c) with respect to the covered 

11 practice at issue. 

12 ‘‘(e) COUNTING OF RACIAL GROUPS AND LANGUAGE

13 MINORITY GROUPS.—For purposes of this section, the cal14 culation of the population of a racial group or a language 

15 minority group shall be carried out using the methodology 

16 in the guidance of the Department of Justice entitled 

17 ‘Guidance Concerning Redistricting Under Section 5 of 

18 the Voting Rights Act; Notice’ (76 Fed. Reg. 7470 (Feb19 ruary 9, 2011)). 

20 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULE.—For purposes of determina21 tions under this section, any data provided by the Bureau 

22 of the Census, whether based on estimation from a sample 

23 or actual enumeration, shall not be subject to challenge 

24 or review in any court. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
34 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(g) MULTILINGUAL VOTING MATERIALS.—In this 

2 section, the term ‘multilingual voting materials’ means 

3 registration or voting notices, forms, instructions, assist4 ance, or other materials or information relating to the 

5 electoral process, including ballots, provided in the lan6 guage or languages of one or more language minority 

7 groups.’’. 

8 SEC. 106. PROMOTING TRANSPARENCY TO ENFORCE THE 

9 VOTING RIGHTS ACT. 

10 (a) TRANSPARENCY.—The Voting Rights Act of 1965 

11 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) is amended by inserting after 

12 section 5 the following: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 6. TRANSPARENCY REGARDING CHANGES TO PRO14 TECT VOTING RIGHTS. 

15 ‘‘(a) NOTICE OF ENACTED CHANGES.— 

16 ‘‘(1) NOTICE OF CHANGES.—If a State or polit17 ical subdivision makes any change in any qualifica18 tion or prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, 

19 or procedure with respect to voting in any election 

20 for Federal office that will result in the qualification 

21 or prerequisite, standard, practice, or procedure 

22 being different from that which was in effect as of 

23 180 days before the date of the election for Federal 

24 office, the State or political subdivision shall provide 

25 reasonable public notice in such State or political 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
35 

•S 4 IS

1 subdivision and on the website of the State or polit2 ical subdivision, of a concise description of the 

3 change, including the difference between the 

4 changed qualification or prerequisite, standard, prac5 tice, or procedure and the qualification, prerequisite, 

6 standard, practice, or procedure which was pre7 viously in effect. The public notice described in this 

8 paragraph, in such State or political subdivision and 

9 on the website of a State or political subdivision, 

10 shall be in a format that is reasonably convenient 

11 and accessible to persons with disabilities who are el12 igible to vote, including persons who have low vision 

13 or are blind. 

14 ‘‘(2) DEADLINE FOR NOTICE.—A State or polit15 ical subdivision shall provide the public notice re16 quired under paragraph (1) not later than 48 hours 

17 after making the change involved. 

18 ‘‘(b) TRANSPARENCY REGARDING POLLING PLACE

19 RESOURCES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to identify any 

21 changes that may impact the right to vote of any 

22 person, prior to the 30th day before the date of an 

23 election for Federal office, each State or political 

24 subdivision with responsibility for allocating reg25 istered voters, voting machines, and official poll 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
36 

•S 4 IS

1 workers to particular precincts and polling places 

2 shall provide reasonable public notice in such State 

3 or political subdivision and on the website of a State 

4 or political subdivision, of the information described 

5 in paragraph (2) for precincts and polling places 

6 within such State or political subdivision. The public 

7 notice described in this paragraph, in such State or 

8 political subdivision and on the website of a State or 

9 political subdivision, shall be in a format that is rea10 sonably convenient and accessible to persons with 

11 disabilities who are eligible to vote, including persons 

12 who have low vision or are blind. 

13 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—The informa14 tion described in this paragraph with respect to a 

15 precinct or polling place is each of the following: 

16 ‘‘(A) The name or number. 

17 ‘‘(B) In the case of a polling place, the lo18 cation, including the street address, and wheth19 er such polling place is accessible to persons 

20 with disabilities. 

21 ‘‘(C) The voting-age population of the area 

22 served by the precinct or polling place, broken 

23 down by demographic group if such breakdown 

24 is reasonably available to such State or political 

25 subdivision. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
37 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(D) The number of registered voters as2 signed to the precinct or polling place, broken 

3 down by demographic group if such breakdown 

4 is reasonably available to such State or political 

5 subdivision. 

6 ‘‘(E) The number of voting machines as7 signed, including the number of voting ma8 chines accessible to persons with disabilities 

9 who are eligible to vote, including persons who 

10 have low vision or are blind. 

11 ‘‘(F) The number of official paid poll 

12 workers assigned. 

13 ‘‘(G) The number of official volunteer poll 

14 workers assigned. 

15 ‘‘(H) In the case of a polling place, the 

16 dates and hours of operation. 

17 ‘‘(3) UPDATES IN INFORMATION REPORTED.— 

18 If a State or political subdivision makes any change 

19 in any of the information described in paragraph 

20 (2), the State or political subdivision shall provide 

21 reasonable public notice in such State or political 

22 subdivision and on the website of a State or political 

23 subdivision, of the change in the information not 

24 later than 48 hours after the change occurs or, if 

25 the change occurs fewer than 48 hours before the 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
38 

•S 4 IS

1 date of the election for Federal office, as soon as 

2 practicable after the change occurs. The public no3 tice described in this paragraph and published on 

4 the website of a State or political subdivision shall 

5 be in a format that is reasonably convenient and ac6 cessible to persons with disabilities who are eligible 

7 to vote, including persons who have low vision or are 

8 blind. 

9 ‘‘(c) TRANSPARENCY OF CHANGES RELATING TO DE10 MOGRAPHICS AND ELECTORAL DISTRICTS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) REQUIRING PUBLIC NOTICE OF

12 CHANGES.—Not later than 10 days after making 

13 any change in the constituency that will participate 

14 in an election for Federal, State, or local office or 

15 the boundaries of a voting unit or electoral district 

16 in an election for Federal, State, or local office (in17 cluding through redistricting, reapportionment, 

18 changing from at-large elections to district-based 

19 elections, or changing from district-based elections 

20 to at-large elections), a State or political subdivision 

21 shall provide reasonable public notice in such State 

22 or political subdivision and on the website of a State 

23 or political subdivision, of the demographic and elec24 toral data described in paragraph (3) for each of the 

25 geographic areas described in paragraph (2). 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
39 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(2) GEOGRAPHIC AREAS DESCRIBED.—The ge2 ographic areas described in this paragraph are as 

3 follows: 

4 ‘‘(A) The State as a whole, if the change 

5 applies statewide, or the political subdivision as 

6 a whole, if the change applies across the entire 

7 political subdivision. 

8 ‘‘(B) If the change includes a plan to re9 place or eliminate voting units or electoral dis10 tricts, each voting unit or electoral district that 

11 will be replaced or eliminated. 

12 ‘‘(C) If the change includes a plan to es13 tablish new voting units or electoral districts, 

14 each such new voting unit or electoral district. 

15 ‘‘(3) DEMOGRAPHIC AND ELECTORAL DATA.— 

16 The demographic and electoral data described in this 

17 paragraph with respect to a geographic area de18 scribed in paragraph (2) are each of the following: 

19 ‘‘(A) The voting-age population, broken 

20 down by demographic group. 

21 ‘‘(B) The number of registered voters, bro22 ken down by demographic group if such break23 down is reasonably available to the State or po24 litical subdivision involved. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
40 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(C)(i) If the change applies to a State, 

2 the actual number of votes, or (if it is not rea3 sonably practicable for the State to ascertain 

4 the actual number of votes) the estimated num5 ber of votes received by each candidate in each 

6 statewide election held during the 5-year period 

7 which ends on the date the change involved is 

8 made; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) if the change applies to only one polit10 ical subdivision, the actual number of votes, or 

11 (if it is not reasonably practicable for the polit12 ical subdivision to ascertain the actual number 

13 of votes) the estimated number of votes in each 

14 subdivision-wide election held during the 5-year 

15 period which ends on the date the change in16 volved is made. 

17 ‘‘(4) VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE BY SMALLER JU18 RISDICTIONS.—Compliance with this subsection shall 

19 be voluntary for a political subdivision of a State un20 less the subdivision is one of the following: 

21 ‘‘(A) A county or parish. 

22 ‘‘(B) A municipality with a population 

23 greater than 10,000, as determined by the Bu24 reau of the Census under the most recent de25 cennial census. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
41 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(C) A school district with a population 

2 greater than 10,000, as determined by the Bu3 reau of the Census under the most recent de4 cennial census. For purposes of this subpara5 graph, the term ‘school district’ means the geo6 graphic area under the jurisdiction of a local 

7 educational agency (as defined in section 8101 

8 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

9 Act of 1965). 

10 ‘‘(d) RULES REGARDING FORMAT OF INFORMA11 TION.—The Attorney General may issue rules specifying 

12 a reasonably convenient and accessible format that States 

13 and political subdivisions shall use to provide public notice 

14 of information under this section. 

15 ‘‘(e) NO DENIAL OF RIGHT TO VOTE.—The right to 

16 vote of any person shall not be denied or abridged because 

17 the person failed to comply with any change made by a 

18 State or political subdivision to a voting qualification, pre19 requisite, standard, practice, or procedure if the State or 

20 political subdivision involved did not meet the applicable 

21 requirements of this section with respect to the change. 

22 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

23 ‘‘(1) the term ‘demographic group’ means each 

24 group which section 2 protects from the denial or 

25 abridgement of the right to vote on account of race 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
42 

•S 4 IS

1 or color, or in contravention of the guarantees set 

2 forth in section 4(f)(2); 

3 ‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 

4 any general, special, primary, or runoff election held 

5 solely or in part for the purpose of electing any can6 didate for the office of President, Vice President, 

7 Presidential elector, Senator, Member of the House 

8 of Representatives, or Delegate or Resident Commis9 sioner to the Congress; and 

10 ‘‘(3) the term ‘persons with disabilities’, means 

11 individuals with a disability, as defined in section 3 

12 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.’’. 

13 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

14 subsection (a)(1) shall apply with respect to changes which 

15 are made on or after the expiration of the 60-day period 

16 which begins on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

17 SEC. 107. AUTHORITY TO ASSIGN OBSERVERS. 

18 (a) CLARIFICATION OF AUTHORITY IN POLITICAL

19 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE.—Section 

20 8(a)(2)(B) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

21 10305(a)(2)(B)) is amended to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(B) in the Attorney General’s judgment, 

23 the assignment of observers is otherwise nec24 essary to enforce the guarantees of the 14th or 

25 15th Amendment or any provision of this Act 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
43 

•S 4 IS

1 or any other Federal law protecting the right of 

2 citizens of the United States to vote; or’’. 

3 (b) ASSIGNMENT OF OBSERVERS TO ENFORCE BI4 LINGUAL ELECTION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 8(a) of 

5 such Act (52 U.S.C. 10305(a)) is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 

7 (1); 

8 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(3) the Attorney General certifies with respect 

11 to a political subdivision that— 

12 ‘‘(A) the Attorney General has received 

13 written meritorious complaints from residents, 

14 elected officials, or civic participation organiza15 tions that efforts to violate section 203 are like16 ly to occur; or 

17 ‘‘(B) in the Attorney General’s judgment, 

18 the assignment of observers is necessary to en19 force the guarantees of section 203;’’; and 

20 (3) by moving the margin for the continuation 

21 text following paragraph (3), as added by paragraph 

22 (2) of this subsection, 2 ems to the left. 

23 (c) TRANSFERRAL OF AUTHORITY OVER OBSERVERS

24 TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.— 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
44 

•S 4 IS

1 (1) ENFORCEMENT PROCEEDINGS.—Section 

2 3(a) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

3 10302(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘United States 

4 Civil Service Commission in accordance with section 

5 6’’ and inserting ‘‘Attorney General in accordance 

6 with section 8’’. 

7 (2) OBSERVERS; APPOINTMENT AND COM8 PENSATION.—Section 8 of the Voting Rights Act of 

9 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10305) is amended— 

10 (A) in subsection (a), in the flush matter 

11 at the end, by striking ‘‘Director of the Office 

12 of Personnel Management shall assign as many 

13 observers for such subdivision as the Director’’ 

14 and inserting ‘‘Attorney General shall assign as 

15 many observers for such subdivision as the At16 torney General’’; 

17 (B) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘Director 

18 of the Office of Personnel Management’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘Attorney General’’; and 

20 (C) in subsection (c), by adding at the end 

21 the following: ‘‘The Director of the Office of 

22 Personnel Management may, with the consent 

23 of the Attorney General, assist in the selection, 

24 recruitment, hiring, training, or deployment of 

25 these or other individuals authorized by the AtVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00044 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
45 

•S 4 IS

1 torney General for the purpose of observing 

2 whether persons who are entitled to vote are 

3 being permitted to vote and whether those votes 

4 are being properly tabulated.’’. 

5 (3) TERMINATION OF CERTAIN APPOINTMENTS

6 OF OBSERVERS.—Section 13(a)(1) of the Voting 

7 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10309(a)(1)) is 

8 amended by striking ‘‘notifies the Director of the Of9 fice of Personnel Management,’’ and inserting ‘‘de10 termines,’’. 

11 SEC. 108. CLARIFICATION OF AUTHORITY TO SEEK RELIEF. 

12 (a) POLL TAX.—Section 10(b) of the Voting Rights 

13 Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10306(b)) is amended by striking 

14 ‘‘the Attorney General is authorized and directed to insti15 tute forthwith in the name of the United States such ac16 tions,’’ and inserting ‘‘an aggrieved person or (in the name 

17 of the United States) the Attorney General may institute 

18 such actions’’. 

19 (b) CAUSE OF ACTION.—Section 12(d) of the Voting 

20 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10308(d)) is amended to 

21 read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(d)(1) Whenever there are reasonable grounds to be23 lieve that any person has engaged in, or is about to engage 

24 in, any act or practice that would (1) deny any citizen 

25 the right to register, to cast a ballot, or to have that ballot 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
46 

•S 4 IS

1 counted properly and included in the appropriate totals 

2 of votes cast in violation of the 14th, 15th, 19th, 24th, 

3 or 26th Amendments to the Constitution of the United 

4 States, (2) violate subsection (a) or (b) of section 11, or 

5 (3) violate any other provision of this Act or any other 

6 Federal voting rights law that prohibits discrimination on 

7 the basis of race, color, or membership in a language mi8 nority group, an aggrieved person or (in the name of the 

9 United States) the Attorney General may institute an ac10 tion for preventive relief, including an application for a 

11 temporary or permanent injunction, restraining order, or 

12 other appropriate order. Nothing in this subsection shall 

13 be construed to create a cause of action for civil enforce14 ment of criminal provisions of this or any other Act.’’. 

15 (c) JUDICIAL RELIEF.—Section 204 of the Voting 

16 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10504) is amended by 

17 striking the first sentence and inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘Whenever there are reasonable grounds to believe that 

19 a State or political subdivision has engaged or is about 

20 to engage in any act or practice prohibited by a provision 

21 of this title, an aggrieved person or (in the name of the 

22 United States) the Attorney General may institute an ac23 tion in a district court of the United States, for a restrain24 ing order, a preliminary or permanent injunction, or such 

25 other order as may be appropriate.’’. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
47 

•S 4 IS

1 (d) ENFORCEMENT OF TWENTY-SIXTH AMEND2 MENT.—Section 301(a)(1) of the Voting Rights Act of 

3 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10701(a)(1)) is amended to read as fol4 lows: 

5 ‘‘(a)(1) An aggrieved person or (in the name of the 

6 United States) the Attorney General may institute an ac7 tion in a district court of the United States, for a restrain8 ing order, a preliminary or permanent injunction, or such 

9 other order as may be appropriate to implement the 26th 

10 Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.’’. 

11 SEC. 109. PREVENTIVE RELIEF. 

12 Section 12(d) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

13 U.S.C. 10308(d)), as amended by section 108, is further 

14 amended by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(2)(A) In considering any motion for preliminary re16 lief in any action for preventive relief described in this sub17 section, the court shall grant the relief if the court deter18 mines that the complainant has raised a serious question 

19 as to whether the challenged voting qualification or pre20 requisite to voting or standard, practice, or procedure vio21 lates any of the provisions listed in section 111(a)(1) of 

22 the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 

23 2024 and, on balance, the hardship imposed on the de24 fendant by the grant of the relief will be less than the 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
48 

•S 4 IS

1 hardship which would be imposed on the plaintiff if the 

2 relief were not granted. 

3 ‘‘(B) In making its determination under this para4 graph with respect to a change in any voting qualification, 

5 prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure 

6 with respect to voting, the court shall consider all relevant 

7 factors and give due weight to the following factors, if they 

8 are present: 

9 ‘‘(i) Whether the qualification, prerequisite, 

10 standard, practice, or procedure in effect prior to the 

11 change was adopted as a remedy for a Federal court 

12 judgment, consent decree, or admission regarding— 

13 ‘‘(I) discrimination on the basis of race or 

14 color in violation of the 14th or 15th Amend15 ment to the Constitution of the United States; 

16 ‘‘(II) a violation of the 19th, 24th, or 26th 

17 Amendments to the Constitution of the United 

18 States; 

19 ‘‘(III) a violation of this Act; or 

20 ‘‘(IV) voting discrimination on the basis of 

21 race, color, or membership in a language minor22 ity group in violation of any other Federal or 

23 State law. 

24 ‘‘(ii) Whether the qualification, prerequisite, 

25 standard, practice, or procedure in effect prior to the 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
49 

•S 4 IS

1 change served as a ground for the dismissal or set2 tlement of a claim alleging— 

3 ‘‘(I) discrimination on the basis of race or 

4 color in violation of the 14th or 15th Amend5 ment to the Constitution of the United States; 

6 ‘‘(II) a violation of the 19th, 24th, or 26th 

7 Amendment to the Constitution of the United 

8 States; 

9 ‘‘(III) a violation of this Act; or 

10 ‘‘(IV) voting discrimination on the basis of 

11 race, color, or membership in a language minor12 ity group in violation of any other Federal or 

13 State law. 

14 ‘‘(iii) Whether the change was adopted fewer 

15 than 180 days before the date of the election with 

16 respect to which the change is to take or takes ef17 fect. 

18 ‘‘(iv) Whether the defendant has failed to pro19 vide timely or complete notice of the adoption of the 

20 change as required by applicable Federal or State 

21 law. 

22 ‘‘(3) A jurisdiction’s inability to enforce its voting or 

23 election laws, regulations, policies, or redistricting plans, 

24 standing alone, shall not be deemed to constitute irrep25 arable harm to the public interest or to the interests of 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
50 

•S 4 IS

1 a defendant in an action arising under the Constitution 

2 or any Federal law that prohibits discrimination on the 

3 basis of race, color, or membership in a language minority 

4 group in the voting process, for the purposes of deter5 mining whether a stay of a court’s order or an interlocu6 tory appeal under section 1253 of title 28, United States 

7 Code, is warranted.’’. 

8 SEC. 110. BILINGUAL ELECTION REQUIREMENTS. 

9 Section 203(b)(1) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 

10 (52 U.S.C. 10503(b)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘2032’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘2037’’. 

12 SEC. 111. RELIEF FOR VIOLATIONS OF VOTING RIGHTS 

13 LAWS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

15 (1) RELIEF FOR VIOLATIONS OF VOTING

16 RIGHTS LAWS.—In this section, the term ‘‘prohibited 

17 act or practice’’ means— 

18 (A) any act or practice— 

19 (i) that creates an undue burden on 

20 the fundamental right to vote in violation 

21 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitu22 tion of the United States or violates the 

23 Equal Protection Clause of the 14th 

24 Amendment to the Constitution of the 

25 United States; or 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
51 

•S 4 IS

1 (ii) that is prohibited by the 15th, 

2 19th, 24th, or 26th Amendment to the 

3 Constitution of the United States, section 

4 2004 of the Revised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 

5 10101), the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

6 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), the National Voter 

7 Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 

8 20501 et seq.), the Uniformed and Over9 seas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (52 

10 U.S.C. 20301 et seq.), the Help America 

11 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et 

12 seq.), the Voting Accessibility for the El13 derly and Handicapped Act (52 U.S.C. 

14 20101 et seq.), or section 2003 of the Re15 vised Statutes (52 U.S.C. 10102); and 

16 (B) any act or practice in violation of any 

17 Federal law that prohibits discrimination with 

18 respect to voting, including the Americans with 

19 Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et 

20 seq.). 

21 (2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

22 section shall be construed to diminish the authority 

23 or scope of authority of any person to bring an ac24 tion under any Federal law. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
52 

•S 4 IS

1 (3) ATTORNEY’S FEES.—Section 722(b) of the 

2 Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1988(b)) is amended by 

3 inserting ‘‘a provision described in section 111(a)(1) 

4 of the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement 

5 Act of 2024,’’ after ‘‘title VI of the Civil Rights Act 

6 of 1964,’’. 

7 (b) GROUNDS FOR EQUITABLE RELIEF.—In any ac8 tion for equitable relief pursuant to a law listed under sub9 section (a), proximity of the action to an election shall not 

10 be a valid reason to deny such relief, or stay the operation 

11 of or vacate the issuance of such relief, unless the party 

12 opposing the issuance or continued operation of relief 

13 meets the burden of proving by clear and convincing evi14 dence that the issuance of the relief would be so close in 

15 time to the election as to cause irreparable harm to the 

16 public interest or that compliance with such relief would 

17 impose serious burdens on the party opposing relief. 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—In considering whether to 

19 grant, deny, stay, or vacate any order of equitable 

20 relief, the court shall give substantial weight to the 

21 public’s interest in expanding access to the right to 

22 vote. A State’s generalized interest in enforcing its 

23 enacted laws shall not be a relevant consideration in 

24 determining whether equitable relief is warranted. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
53 

•S 4 IS

1 (2) PRESUMPTIVE SAFE HARBOR.—Where equi2 table relief is sought either within 30 days of the 

3 adoption or reasonable public notice of the chal4 lenged policy or practice, or more than 45 days be5 fore the date of an election to which the relief being 

6 sought will apply, proximity to the election will be 

7 presumed not to constitute a harm to the public in8 terest or a burden on the party opposing relief. 

9 (c) GROUNDS FOR STAY OR VACATUR IN FEDERAL

10 CLAIMS INVOLVING VOTING RIGHTS.— 

11 (1) PROSPECTIVE EFFECT.—In reviewing an 

12 application for a stay or vacatur of equitable relief 

13 granted pursuant to a law listed in subsection (a), 

14 a court shall give substantial weight to the reliance 

15 interests of citizens who acted pursuant to such 

16 order under review. In fashioning a stay or vacatur, 

17 a reviewing court shall not order relief that has the 

18 effect of denying or abridging the right to vote of 

19 any citizen who has acted in reliance on the order. 

20 (2) WRITTEN EXPLANATION.—No stay or 

21 vacatur under this subsection shall issue unless the 

22 reviewing court makes specific findings that the pub23 lic interest, including the public’s interest in expand24 ing access to the ballot, will be harmed by the con25 tinuing operation of the equitable relief or that comVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
54 

•S 4 IS

1 pliance with such relief will impose serious burdens 

2 on the party seeking such a stay or vacatur such 

3 that those burdens substantially outweigh the bene4 fits to the public interest. In reviewing an applica5 tion for a stay or vacatur of equitable relief, findings 

6 of fact made in issuing the order under review shall 

7 not be set aside unless clearly erroneous. 

8 SEC. 112. PROTECTION OF TABULATED VOTES. 

9 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10307) 

10 is amended— 

11 (1) in section 11— 

12 (A) by amending subsection (a) to read as 

13 follows: 

14 ‘‘(a) No person acting under color of law shall— 

15 ‘‘(1) fail or refuse to permit any person to vote 

16 who is entitled to vote under Federal law or is other17 wise qualified to vote; 

18 ‘‘(2) willfully fail or refuse to tabulate, count, 

19 and report such person’s vote; or 

20 ‘‘(3) willfully fail or refuse to certify the aggre21 gate tabulations of such persons’ votes or certify the 

22 election of the candidates receiving sufficient such 

23 votes to be elected to office.’’; and 

24 (B) in subsection (b), by inserting ‘‘sub25 section (a) or’’ after ‘‘duties under’’; and 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
55 

•S 4 IS

1 (2) in section 12— 

2 (A) in subsection (b)— 

3 (i) by striking ‘‘a year following an 

4 election in a political subdivision in which 

5 an observer has been assigned’’ and insert6 ing ‘‘22 months following an election for 

7 Federal office’’; and 

8 (ii) by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: ‘‘Whenever the Attorney General 

10 has reasonable grounds to believe that any 

11 person has engaged in or is about to en12 gage in an act in violation of this sub13 section, the Attorney General may institute 

14 (in the name of the United States) a civil 

15 action in Federal district court seeking ap16 propriate relief.’’; 

17 (B) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘or so18 licits a violation of’’ after ‘‘conspires to violate’’; 

19 and 

20 (C) in subsection (e), by striking the first 

21 and second sentences and inserting the fol22 lowing: ‘‘If, after the closing of the polls in an 

23 election for Federal office, persons allege that 

24 notwithstanding (1) their registration by an ap25 propriate election official and (2) their eligiVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00055 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
56 

•S 4 IS

1 bility to vote in the political subdivision, their 

2 ballots have not been counted in such election, 

3 and if upon prompt receipt of notifications of 

4 these allegations, the Attorney General finds 

5 such allegations to be well founded, the Attor6 ney General may forthwith file with the district 

7 court an application for an order providing for 

8 the counting and certification of the ballots of 

9 such persons and requiring the inclusion of 

10 their votes in the total vote for all applicable of11 fices before the results of such election shall be 

12 deemed final and any force or effect given 

13 thereto.’’. 

14 SEC. 113. ENFORCEMENT OF VOTING RIGHTS BY ATTORNEY 

15 GENERAL. 

16 Section 12 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

17 U.S.C. 10308), as amended by this Act, is further amend18 ed by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(g) VOTING RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT BY ATTORNEY

20 GENERAL.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to fulfill the At22 torney General’s responsibility to enforce this Act 

23 and other Federal laws that protect the right to 

24 vote, the Attorney General (or upon designation by 

25 the Attorney General, the Assistant Attorney GenVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
57 

•S 4 IS

1 eral for Civil Rights) is authorized, before com2 mencing a civil action, to issue a demand for inspec3 tion and information in writing to any State or polit4 ical subdivision, or other governmental representa5 tive or agent, with respect to any relevant documen6 tary material that the Attorney General has reason 

7 to believe is within their possession, custody, or con8 trol. A demand by the Attorney General under this 

9 subsection may require— 

10 ‘‘(A) the production of such documentary 

11 material for inspection and copying; 

12 ‘‘(B) answers in writing to written ques13 tions with respect to such documentary mate14 rial; or 

15 ‘‘(C) both the production described under 

16 subparagraph (A) and the answers described 

17 under subparagraph (B). 

18 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF AN ATTORNEY GENERAL

19 DEMAND.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any demand issued 

21 under paragraph (1), shall include a sworn cer22 tificate to identify the voting qualification or 

23 prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or 

24 procedure with respect to voting, or other vot25 ing related matter or issue, whose lawfulness 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
58 

•S 4 IS

1 the Attorney General is investigating and to 

2 identify the Federal law that protects the right 

3 to vote under which the investigation is being 

4 conducted. The demand shall be reasonably cal5 culated to lead to the discovery of documentary 

6 material and information relevant to such inves7 tigation. Documentary material includes any 

8 material upon which relevant information is re9 corded, and includes written or printed mate10 rials, photographs, tapes, or materials upon 

11 which information is electronically or magneti12 cally recorded. Such demands shall be aimed at 

13 the Attorney General having the ability to in14 spect and obtain copies of relevant materials (as 

15 well as obtain information) related to voting 

16 and are not aimed at the Attorney General tak17 ing possession of original records, particularly 

18 those that are required to be retained by State 

19 and local election officials under Federal or 

20 State law. 

21 ‘‘(B) NO REQUIREMENT FOR PRODUC22 TION.—Any demand issued under paragraph 

23 (1) may not require the production of any docu24 mentary material or the submission of any an25 swers in writing to written questions if such 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
59 

•S 4 IS

1 material or answers would be protected from 

2 disclosure under the standards applicable to 

3 discovery requests under the Federal Rules of 

4 Civil Procedure in an action in which the Attor5 ney General or the United States is a party. 

6 ‘‘(C) DOCUMENTARY MATERIAL.—If the 

7 demand issued under paragraph (1) requires 

8 the production of documentary material, it 

9 shall— 

10 ‘‘(i) identify the class of documentary 

11 material to be produced with such definite12 ness and certainty as to permit such mate13 rial to be fairly identified; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) prescribe a return date for pro15 duction of the documentary material at 

16 least 20 days after issuance of the demand 

17 to give the State or political subdivision, or 

18 other governmental representative or 

19 agent, a reasonable period of time for as20 sembling the documentary material and 

21 making it available for inspection and 

22 copying. 

23 ‘‘(D) ANSWERS TO WRITTEN QUES24 TIONS.—If the demand issued under paragraph 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
60 

•S 4 IS

1 (1) requires answers in writing to written ques2 tions, it shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) set forth with specificity the writ4 ten question to be answered; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) prescribe a date at least 20 days 

6 after the issuance of the demand for sub7 mitting answers in writing to the written 

8 questions. 

9 ‘‘(E) SERVICE.—A demand issued under 

10 paragraph (1) may be served by a United 

11 States marshal or a deputy marshal, or by cer12 tified mail, at any place within the territorial 

13 jurisdiction of any court of the United States. 

14 ‘‘(3) RESPONSES TO AN ATTORNEY GENERAL

15 DEMAND.—A State or political subdivision, or other 

16 governmental representative or agent, shall, with re17 spect to any documentary material or any answer in 

18 writing produced under this subsection, provide a 

19 sworn certificate, in such form as the demand issued 

20 under paragraph (1) designates, by a person having 

21 knowledge of the facts and circumstances relating to 

22 such production or written answer, authorized to act 

23 on behalf of the State or political subdivision, or 

24 other governmental representative or agent, upon 

25 which the demand was served. The certificate— 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
61 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(A) shall state that— 

2 ‘‘(i) all of the documentary material 

3 required by the demand and in the posses4 sion, custody, or control of the State or po5 litical subdivision, or other governmental 

6 representative or agent, has been produced; 

7 ‘‘(ii) with respect to every answer in 

8 writing to a written question, all informa9 tion required by the question and in the 

10 possession, custody, control, or knowledge 

11 of the State or political subdivision, or 

12 other governmental representative or 

13 agent, has been submitted; or 

14 ‘‘(iii) the requirements described in 

15 both clause (i) and clause (ii) have been 

16 met; or 

17 ‘‘(B) provide the basis for any objection to 

18 producing the documentary material or answer19 ing the written question. 

20 To the extent that any information is not furnished, 

21 the information shall be identified and reasons set 

22 forth with particularity regarding the reasons why 

23 the information was not furnished. 

24 ‘‘(4) JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS.— 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
62 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(A) PETITION FOR ENFORCEMENT.— 

2 Whenever any State or political subdivision, or 

3 other governmental representative or agent, 

4 fails to comply with demand issued by the At5 torney General under paragraph (1), the Attor6 ney General may file, in a district court of the 

7 United States in which the State or political 

8 subdivision, or other governmental representa9 tive or agent, is located, a petition for a judicial 

10 order enforcing the Attorney General demand 

11 issued under paragraph (1). 

12 ‘‘(B) PETITION TO MODIFY.— 

13 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Any State or po14 litical subdivision, or other governmental 

15 representative or agent, that is served with 

16 a demand issued by the Attorney General 

17 under paragraph (1) may file in the United 

18 States District Court for the District of 

19 Columbia a petition for an order of the 

20 court to modify or set aside the demand of 

21 the Attorney General. 

22 ‘‘(ii) PETITION TO MODIFY.—Any pe23 tition to modify or set aside a demand of 

24 the Attorney General issued under para25 graph (1) must be filed within 20 days 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
63 

•S 4 IS

1 after the date of service of the Attorney 

2 General’s demand or at any time before 

3 the return date specified in the Attorney 

4 General’s demand, whichever date is ear5 lier. 

6 ‘‘(iii) CONTENTS OF PETITION.—The 

7 petition shall specify each ground upon 

8 which the petitioner relies in seeking relief 

9 under clause (i), and may be based upon 

10 any failure of the Attorney General’s de11 mand to comply with the provisions of this 

12 section or upon any constitutional or other 

13 legal right or privilege of the State or po14 litical subdivision, or other governmental 

15 representative or agent. During the pend16 ency of the petition in the court, the court 

17 may stay, as it deems proper, the running 

18 of the time allowed for compliance with the 

19 Attorney General’s demand, in whole or in 

20 part, except that the State or political sub21 division, or other governmental representa22 tive or agent, filing the petition shall com23 ply with any portions of the Attorney Gen24 eral’s demand not sought to be modified or 

25 set aside.’’. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
64 

•S 4 IS

1 SEC. 114. DEFINITIONS. 

2 Title I of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

3 10301) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 21. DEFINITIONS. 

5 ‘‘In this Act: 

6 ‘‘(1) INDIAN.—The term ‘Indian’ has the mean7 ing given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self8 Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 

9 U.S.C. 5304). 

10 ‘‘(2) INDIAN LANDS.—The term ‘Indian lands’ 

11 means— 

12 ‘‘(A) any Indian country of an Indian 

13 tribe, as such term is defined in section 1151 

14 of title 18, United States Code; 

15 ‘‘(B) any land in Alaska that is owned, 

16 pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settle17 ment Act, by an Indian tribe that is a Native 

18 village (as such term is defined in section 3 of 

19 such Act), or by a Village Corporation that is 

20 associated with the Indian tribe (as such term 

21 is defined in section 3 of such Act); 

22 ‘‘(C) any land on which the seat of govern23 ment of the Indian tribe is located; and 

24 ‘‘(D) any land that is part or all of a tribal 

25 designated statistical area associated with the 

26 Indian tribe, or is part or all of an Alaska NaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00064 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
65 

•S 4 IS

1 tive village statistical area associated with the 

2 tribe, as defined by the Bureau of the Census 

3 for the purposes of the most recent decennial 

4 census. 

5 ‘‘(3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian tribe’ or 

6 ‘tribe’ has the meaning given the term ‘Indian tribe’ 

7 in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and 

8 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

9 ‘‘(4) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘Tribal 

10 Government’ means the recognized governing body 

11 of an Indian Tribe. 

12 ‘‘(5) VOTING-AGE POPULATION.—The term 

13 ‘voting-age population’ means the numerical size of 

14 the population within a State, within a political sub15 division, or within a political subdivision that con16 tains Indian lands, as the case may be, that consists 

17 of persons age 18 or older, as calculated by the Bu18 reau of the Census under the most recent decennial 

19 census.’’. 

20 SEC. 115. ATTORNEYS’ FEES. 

21 Section 14(c) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

22 U.S.C. 10310(c)) is amended by adding at the end the 

23 following: 

24 ‘‘(4) The term ‘prevailing party’ means a party to an 

25 action that receives at least some of the benefit sought 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
66 

•S 4 IS

1 by such action, states a colorable claim, and can establish 

2 that the action was a significant cause of a change to the 

3 status quo.’’. 

4 SEC. 116. OTHER TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND5 MENTS. 

6 (a) ACTIONS COVERED UNDER SECTION 3.—Section 

7 3(c) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

8 10302(c)) is amended— 

9 (1) by striking ‘‘any proceeding instituted by 

10 the Attorney General or an aggrieved person under 

11 any statute to enforce’’ and inserting ‘‘any action 

12 under any statute in which a party (including the 

13 Attorney General) seeks to enforce’’; and 

14 (2) by striking ‘‘at the time the proceeding was 

15 commenced’’ and inserting ‘‘at the time the action 

16 was commenced’’. 

17 (b) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF MEMBERS OF

18 LANGUAGE MINORITY GROUPS.—Section 4(f) of such Act 

19 (52 U.S.C. 10303(f)) is amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking the second 

21 sentence; and 

22 (2) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4). 

23 (c) PERIOD DURING WHICH CHANGES IN VOTING

24 PRACTICES ARE SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE UNDER


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
67 

•S 4 IS

1 SECTION 5.—Section 5 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10304) 

2 is amended— 

3 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘based upon 

4 determinations made under the first sentence of sec5 tion 4(b) are in effect’’ and inserting ‘‘are in effect 

6 during a calendar year’’; 

7 (2) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘November 1, 

8 1964’’ and all that follows through ‘‘November 1, 

9 1972’’ and inserting ‘‘the applicable date of cov10 erage’’; and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub12 section: 

13 ‘‘(e) The term ‘applicable date of coverage’ means, 

14 with respect to a State or political subdivision— 

15 ‘‘(1) June 25, 2013, if the most recent deter16 mination for such State or subdivision under section 

17 4(b) was made on or before December 31, 2021; or 

18 ‘‘(2) the date on which the most recent deter19 mination for such State or subdivision under section 

20 4(b) was made, if such determination was made 

21 after December 31, 2021.’’. 

22 (d) REVIEW OF PRECLEARANCE SUBMISSION UNDER

23 SECTION 5 DUE TO EXIGENCY.—Section 5 of such Act 

24 (52 U.S.C. 10304) is amended, in subsection (a), by in25 serting ‘‘An exigency, including a natural disaster, inclemVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00067 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
68 

•S 4 IS

1 ent weather, or other unforeseeable event, requiring such 

2 different qualification, prerequisite, standard, practice, or 

3 procedure within 30 days of a Federal, State, or local elec4 tion shall constitute good cause requiring the Attorney 

5 General to expedite consideration of the submission.’’ after 

6 ‘‘will not be made.’’. 

7 SEC. 117. SEVERABILITY. 

8 If any provision of the John R. Lewis Voting Rights 

9 Advancement Act of 2024 or any amendment made by this 

10 title, or the application of such a provision or amendment 

11 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu12 tional or is otherwise enjoined or unenforceable, the re13 mainder of this title and amendments made by this title, 

14 and the application of the provisions and amendments to 

15 any other person or circumstance, and any remaining pro16 vision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 

17 et seq.), shall not be affected by the holding. In addition, 

18 if any provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

19 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), or any amendment to the Voting 

20 Rights Act of 1965, or the application of such a provision 

21 or amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to 

22 be unconstitutional or is otherwise enjoined or unenforce23 able, the application of the provision and amendment to 

24 any other person or circumstance, and any remaining proVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
69 

•S 4 IS

1 visions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, shall not be af2 fected by the holding. 

3 SEC. 118. GRANTS TO ASSIST WITH NOTICE REQUIREMENTS 

4 UNDER THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall make 

6 grants each fiscal year to small jurisdictions who submit 

7 applications under subsection (b) for purposes of assisting 

8 such small jurisdictions with compliance with the require9 ments of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to submit or pub10 lish notice of any change to a qualification, prerequisite, 

11 standard, practice or procedure affecting voting. 

12 (b) APPLICATION.—To be eligible for a grant under 

13 this section, a small jurisdiction shall submit an applica14 tion to the Attorney General in such form and containing 

15 such information as the Attorney General may require re16 garding the compliance of such small jurisdiction with the 

17 provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 

18 (c) SMALL JURISDICTION DEFINED.—For purposes 

19 of this section, the term ‘‘small jurisdiction’’ means any 

20 political subdivision of a State with a population of 10,000 

21 or less. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
70 

•S 4 IS

1 TITLE II—ELECTION WORKER 

2 AND POLLING PLACE PRO3 TECTION 

4 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Election Worker and 

6 Polling Place Protection Act’’. 

7 SEC. 202. PROHIBITION ON INTERFERENCE AND INTIMIDA8 TION. 

9 Section 11 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

10 U.S.C. 10307) is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(f)(1)(A) Whoever, whether or not acting under 

13 color of law, by force or threat of force, or by violence 

14 or threat of violence to any person or property, willfully 

15 interferes with or attempts to interfere with, the ability 

16 of any person or any class of persons to vote or qualify 

17 to vote, or to qualify or act as a poll watcher or as any 

18 legally authorized election official, in any primary, special, 

19 or general election, or any person who is, or is employed 

20 by, an agent, contractor, or vendor of a legally authorized 

21 election official assisting in the administration of any pri22 mary, special, or general election to assist in that adminis23 tration, shall be fined not more than $2,500, or impris24 oned not more than 6 months, or both. 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
71 

•S 4 IS

1 ‘‘(B) Whoever, whether or not acting under color of 

2 law, by force or threat of force, or by violence or threat 

3 of violence to any person or property, willfully intimidates 

4 or attempts to intimidate, any person or any class of per5 sons seeking to vote or qualify to vote, or to qualify or 

6 act as a poll watcher or as any legally authorized election 

7 official, in any primary, special, or general election, or any 

8 person who is, or is employed by, an agent, contractor, 

9 or vendor of a legally authorized election official assisting 

10 in the administration of any primary, special, or general 

11 election, shall be fined not more than $2,500, or impris12 oned not more than 6 months, or both. 

13 ‘‘(C) If bodily injury results from an act committed 

14 in violation of this paragraph or if such act includes the 

15 use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous 

16 weapon, an explosive, or fire, then, in lieu of the remedy 

17 described in subparagraph (A) or (B), the violator shall 

18 be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more 

19 than 1 year, or both. 

20 ‘‘(2)(A) Whoever, whether or not acting under color 

21 of law, willfully physically damages or threatens to phys22 ically damage any physical property being used as a poll23 ing place or tabulation center or other election infrastruc24 ture, with the intent to interfere with the administration 

25 of a primary, general, or special election or the tabulation 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
72 

•S 4 IS

1 or certification of votes for such an election, shall be fined 

2 not more than $2,500, or imprisoned not more than 6 

3 months, or both. 

4 ‘‘(B) If bodily injury results from an act committed 

5 in violation of this paragraph or if such act includes the 

6 use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous 

7 weapon, an explosive, or fire, then, in lieu of the remedy 

8 described in subparagraph (A), the violator shall be fined 

9 not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more than 1 year, 

10 or both. 

11 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, de minimus 

12 damage or a threat of de minimus damage to physical 

13 property shall not be considered a violation of this sub14 section. 

15 ‘‘(4) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘elec16 tion infrastructure’ means any office of a legally author17 ized election official, or a staffer, worker, or volunteer, as18 sisting such an election official or any physical, mechan19 ical, or electrical device, structure, or tangible item, used 

20 in the process of creating, distributing, voting, returning, 

21 counting, tabulating, auditing, storing, or other handling 

22 of voter registration or ballot information. 

23 ‘‘(g) No prosecution of any offense described in sub24 section (f) may be undertaken by the United States, exVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Mar 02, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00072 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4.IS S4

kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB
73 

•S 4 IS

1 cept under the certification in writing of the Attorney Gen2 eral, or a designee, that— 

3 ‘‘(1) the State does not have jurisdiction; 

4 ‘‘(2) the State has requested that the Federal 

5 Government assume jurisdiction; or 

6 ‘‘(3) a prosecution by the United States is in 

7 the public interest and necessary to secure substan8 tial justice.’’. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB