Jocelyn Benson Reintroduces Michigan Voting Rights Act, Lays Out Case for Additional Protections
Benson: “It’s on us to fight back”
In a new op-ed in the Michigan Chronicle, Jocelyn Benson outlined the impact of the Supreme Court’s decision to gut the Voting Rights Act last week and called on the state legislature to pass the Michigan Voting Rights Act. As Secretary of State, Jocelyn has stood up for Michiganders’ right to vote at every turn — even when it meant sheltering in her home as armed protesters and the President of the United States tried to bully her to overturn an election. She’s made clear she will take on anyone, no matter how wealthy or powerful, who threatens Michiganders’ rights and freedoms.
Key point: “[H]istory teaches us that when we refuse to be intimidated, and choose to stand strong, we can end injustice everywhere. So let’s lock arms, Michigan, and pass a Voting Rights Act in our state. Let’s show the nation who we are and what we believe in – a democracy for all.”
In case you missed it…
Michigan Chronicle: SOS Jocelyn Benson: As the US Supreme Court Guts the Voting Rights Act, It’s on Us to Fight Back
[Jocelyn Benson, 05/15/2026]
I started my career in Montgomery Alabama. I moved there to dig deep into the unfinished work of the civil rights movement, see first-hand the multi-generational impact of slavery, Jim Crow, and structural racism, and learn from those who worked and organized for a more just and equal world. I lived among those who were threatened, beaten and murdered for participating in a march for voting rights in Selma, Alabama. I came to Michigan, clerking for Judge Damon Keith and then running for Secretary of State, to do what I could to help ensure the one person one vote promise in our constitution is a reality for everyone. Last week a majority of justices on the United States Supreme Court eviscerated that constitutional promise.
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[T]his ruling is the culmination of a multi-decade long, well-coordinated effort to chip away at the crowning achievement of the civil rights movement. And with the loss of the federal protections of the Voting Rights Act, states are now free to discriminate against American voters.
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This week I partnered with State Senators Darrin Camilleri, Erica Geiss, Jeremy Moss and Stephanie Chang and State Legislators Stephanie Young, Veronica Paiz, Jason Hoskins and Tonya Phillips to re-introduce a Michigan Voting Rights Act to re-establish the protections of the national VRA in our state. And we are building a coalition with clerks, faith leaders, and civil rights organizations across Michigan to get this passed.
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Because even when it meant sheltering in my home in Detroit, protecting my son from people with guns who showed up on my front lawn because of lies they’d been fed about our elections – I am committed [to] continuing the work of all those who came before us to fight for your freedom to vote.
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But because the eyes of all those who came before us are on us now. And the eyes of the young boys and girls who will inherit what we leave behind – they are looking to us as well to fix what is broken and fight for them.
The fight for democracy is ours to continue, our baton to carry, our battle to wage. And history teaches us that when we refuse to be intimidated, and choose to stand strong, we can end injustice everywhere. So let’s lock arms, Michigan, and pass a Voting Rights Act in our state. Let’s show the nation who we are and what we believe in – a democracy for all.
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