Letter to Senator Sinema to Approve the For the People Act

September 21, 2021

The Honorable Kyrsten Sinema

Hart Senate Office Building, Room: 317
2nd and C Streets, N.E.
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator Sinema,

On behalf of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare and the below individuals and organizations, we urge you to support a narrow change to the filibuster rule to allow the Senate to approve S. 1, the For the People Act, by a simple majority vote. This crucial legislation will help to protect our democracy and the right to vote for all Americans, including older Arizonans who depend on voting by mail.

More than any other age group, senior citizens benefit from the ease and comfort of vote-by-mail. Those who are immobile or sick can request mail ballots, as can those who cannot drive or lack access to mass transit. Mail ballots represent a way for those individuals to exercise their constitutional rights at election time in a convenient way.

Studies have shown vote-by-mail to be consistently free of fraud. A Massachusetts Institute of Technology study found only 0.00006 percent of 250 million votes by mailed ballots nationwide were fraudulent. Additionally, scholars at Stanford University analyzing 1996-2018 data in California, Utah and Washington found vote-by-mail did not advantage one political party over another.

In 2020, many seniors chose vote-by-mail in an effort to exercise their right to vote and stay safe during the pandemic. In fact, 41 percent of voters age 50-64 and 55 percent of voters over age 65 voted by mail in the 2020 election. The safety and convenience of this method of voting is likely to prove equally effective in future elections – unless state legislatures decide to obstruct voting by mail.

Given the advantages and encouraging results of the nation’s vote-by-mail experience, and the paucity of evidence of voter fraud, we question why so many states, including Arizona, are moving in the opposite direction – to discourage vote-by-mail. According to the Brennan Center, a nonpartisan law and policy organization, between January 1 and May 14, 2021, at least 14 states enacted 22 new laws that restrict access to the vote.

In Arizona, state legislation has been enacted to prohibit sending absentee ballots or ballot applications to voters unless requested and the new law imposes stricter signature requirements for mail ballots. This law is a solution in search of a problem since Arizona county election officials recently reported fewer than 200 cases of potential voter fraud out of more than 3 million ballots cast in the 2020 election.

The For the People Act would protect all Americans from new state voter suppression laws by setting national mail-in voting standards and guaranteeing no-excuse mail-in voting. S. 1 requires states to give every voter the option to vote by mail, calls for prepaid postage for all election materials and state-provided drop boxes for federal races. These guarantees will provide seniors, including older Arizonans, with the assurance that they will be able to participate in future elections.

But what stands in the way of guaranteeing our democracy and the constitutional right to vote is the use of the Senate filibuster against S. 1. In the past, you have repeatedly listened to, and addressed the needs and concerns of seniors. We urge you to listen to seniors again by protecting their right to vote through supporting a narrow change to the filibuster rule to allow the Senate to approve the For the People Act by a simple majority vote.

Respectfully yours,

Max Richtman, President and CEO

National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare

Dennis DeConcini, United States Senator, Ret.

Steve Regenstreif, Chair

DNC Seniors Council

Prior to retirement, Director of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Retiree Program

Maria Cordone, Executive Vice-Chair

DNC Seniors Council

Prior to retirement, Director of International Association of Machinist Retirees

Jon “Bowzer” Bauman, President

Social Security Works PAC

Judy Beard, Legislative and Political Director,

American Postal Workers Union

Cathy Hurwit, Treasurer

DNC Seniors Council

For 20 years, Chief of Staff for Representative Jan Schakowsky

A primary staffer for House Democratic Caucus Seniors Task Force

Carlottia Scott, Executive Board

DNC Seniors Council

For 35 years, Chief of Staff for Representative Barbara Lee and Representative Ron Dellums

Former DNC Political Director

Thomas Murphy, Chapter Leader

United Federation of Teacher Retirees

Todd Crenshaw, Director

National Education Association Retirees

Julie Horwin, Past President

Arizona National Education Association Retirees

Arizona Democratic Party Seniors Council

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Arizona Retiree Chapter 97

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Arizona PEOPLE Committee

Julie Tippins, Director

American Federation of Government Employees Retirees

Jim Centner, Executive Board

DNC Seniors Council

Prior to Retirement, Director, Steelworker Organization of Active Retirees

Steelworker Organization of Active Retirees

United Steelworkers of America

Ernie Powell, Retiree Advocate

National Education Association

Joseph F. Piccari, Ph.D, President

Marsha McGovern, Past President

Sun City, Arizona Democratic Club

Economic Opportunity Institute

American Postal Workers Union Retirees Department

Alliance for Justice

National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs

National Senior Corps Association

David Lipschutz

Center for Medicare Advocacy

Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE)

Nanine Meiklejohn, President

National Capital Area Union Retirees

Gail Dratch, Executive Board

DNC Seniors Council

Formerly Legislative Representative for Retirement Security, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations Dept. of Government Affairs

Roman Ulman, President

Fran Krugen, Treasurer

Liz Perracehio, Corresponding Secretary

Luisa Pedraza, Recording Secretary

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Arizona Retiree Chapter 97

Sandra Cole, President

Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans

Also, President, Arizona Communications Workers of America Retirees

Dan Pollard, President

West Valley Union Club

Vic Peterson, President

Arizona American Federation of Government Employees Retiree Club