For Immediate Release
Contact: John-Michael Torres, 956-784-0086, johnmichael@lupenet.org
WHAT: Border Voters Support House Walkout, Call for Federal Voter Protection Legislation
WHO: Border voters, voting rights advocates La Unión del Pueblo Entero, ARISE Adelante and ACLU of Texas
WHERE: Office of Texas Representative Armando Martinez, 914 W. Pike Blvd., Weslaco, TX 78596
WHEN: Wednesday, July 21, 2021, 10 AM
SAN JUAN, TX – Voting rights advocates in the Rio Grande Valley are declaring that congressional action to protect the vote in Texas is fundamental for the voice and power of our fast-growing region. Advocates and voters will gather at the Weslaco office of Texas Representative Armando Martinez Wednesday morning to show support for Texas House members who shut down voter suppression legislation in the special legislative session by fleeing to D.C. to advocate for federal voting rights legislation.
Securing federal voting rights legislation, including the For The People Act, is critical if communities of color in the Rio Grande Valley will have the impact in state and national politics and elections that reflects our growing share of the electorate. With voter suppression at the top of Governor Abbott’s agenda in the special session, Congress must act to ensure voters of the Rio Grande Valley and across the Texas/Mexico border have a voice in the elections that shape the future of our state.
“The Black and brown vote in Texas is critical and growing in numbers and power,” said Daniel Diaz, LUPE’s Director of Community Organizing, in the inaugural episode of weekly web series Border Voters. “In the Rio Grande Valley, we’re one of the fastest-growing regions in the entire country. That means border voters hold a lot of power over the future of Texas and the U.S. Unfortunately, Governor Abbott and other state politicians have been doing everything they can to dilute the power of our votes and make it harder for us to reach the polls.”
More than 50 Texas Democrats walked out of the state’s special session and left to D.C. to urge Congress to pass federal voting rights legislation. This historic walkout includes four legislators from the Rio Grande Valley: Rep. Armando Martinez, Bobby Guerra, Eddie Lucio III, and Alex Dominguez.