Polis signs sweeping election bill modeled on federal law—GOP calls it unnecessary
By Marissa Ventrelli | Denver Gazette
Gov. Jared Polis signed a trio of election-related bills into law on Monday, including a measure sponsors say will "safeguard voting rights in Colorado amid federal uncertainty."
Senate Bill 001, sponsored by Sen. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, and Reps. Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver, and Junie Joseph, D-Boulder, implements a state-level version of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which banned certain discriminatory voting practices.
Several states, including Colorado, are considering their own version of the Voting Rights Act: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Maryland and New Jersey. Meanwhile, Washington and New York have already passed a state-version of the federal law.
Gonzales said Senate Bill 001 mirrors the federal Voting Ri...