John Larson - Our Democracy 2020
Common Cause uses cookies to make its websites more user-friendly, to learn more view our privacy policy.

“If elected, I will endorse, prioritize, and support:”

For The People Act Passing the For the People Act (HR 1/S 949)

Yes

– –
Automatic Voter Registration Making the voter registration process convenient, fair, and secure for all eligible Americans—including same-day ("Election Day") and automatic voter registration, as more than one-dozen states already have.

Yes

– –
Vote By Mail Ensuring all eligible Americans can have safe and accessible voting options, such as vote-by-mail, no-excuse absentee voting, and early voting.

Yes

– –
Restore the VRA Restoring the Voting Rights Act to prevent states and localities from passing discriminatory voting laws.

Yes

– –
Secure Elections Safeguarding elections from cyberattacks by requiring paper ballots for all voters and risk-limiting post-election audits.

Yes

– –
Re-enfranchise Incarcerated People Restoring voting rights of all persons convicted of wrongdoing after they have served their sentences (although Common Cause supports voting rights for currently incarcerated individuals, at a minimum, you support rights restoration for the previously-incarcerated).

Yes

– –
Spending Disclosure Strengthening disclosure requirements for campaign-related and issue ad spending, including for online advertisements, by corporations and outside groups.

Yes

– –
Citizen Funded Elections Creating a voluntary, non-taxpayer funded small donor matching program for congressional elections to amplify the role of small donors and enhance the voices of everyday Americans (Common Cause supports a variety of funding sources for state and local small donor systems).

Yes

– –
Overturn Citizens United Passing a constitutional amendment to overturn the Citizens United decision and other court cases that have empowered the wealthy and corporate entities to unduly influence American elections.

Yes

– –
Presidential Tax Returns Requiring the President and Vice President to be subject to federal conflict-of-interest laws and require presidential candidates to publicly release their full tax returns for at least the three most recent taxable years.

Yes

– –
Executive Branch Ethics Passing reforms to 1) enhance whistleblower protections; 2) protect Inspectors General; and 3) prevent future administrations from further politicizing the executive branch.

Yes

– –
Supreme Court Ethics Requiring Supreme Court justices to be bound by a judicial code of ethics, as all other federal judges are.

Yes

– –
Impartial Redistricting Creating independent redistricting commissions, as nearly one-dozen states already have, to allow voters to choose their elected officials instead of politicians cherry-picking their voters.

Yes

– –
End Prison Gerrymandering Ending the practice of prison gerrymandering by requiring the Census Bureau to count incarcerated individuals as residents of their home community instead of place of incarceration.

Yes

– –
Restore Net Neutrality Restoring the Federal Communications Commission’s 2015 net neutrality rules, which preserved and protected the open Internet, as contained in the Save the Internet Act.

Yes

– –
Close The Digital Divide Passing laws that strengthen investments in digital inclusion programs including affordable, robust broadband services and access to digital literacy training to ensure all communities have access to communication technologies, such as through the Digital Equity Act.

Yes

– –
Additional Comments

Provide additional comments if necessary.

Response

The fight for fair elections and a functioning democracy is one of the most important issues of our time. From the Citizens United ruling, the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, partisan gerrymandering, to the corrosive influence of money in politics, it's abundantly clear that we need to reform the system to ensure the people have a voice in their government. This is an issue that I care about deeply and have been at the forefront of throughout my career. I introduced the Fair Elections Now Act in 2009 to create a voluntary public financing system for campaigns while amplifying small donors. In the 113th Congress, I was proud to serve as the first Chairman of the Task Force on Election Reform, leading the efforts to fight the influence of big money in politics and protect people's constitutional right to vote. Later on, I worked with Rep. John Sarbanes to build upon these ideas to develop H.R. 20, the Government by the People Act. Under the new Democratic majority this Congress, I was proud to be an original cosponsor and vote for landmark democracy reform legislation, the For the People Act (H.R. 1).

In addition to fighting for fairer elections, I'm proud to be a leader in Congress on Social Security as the author of the leading bill in the House to expand and protect Social Security for current and future generations. I'm also working to provide students a pathway to relieve their student loans through national service, to invest over $1 trillion in infrastructure projects that will put millions to work while tackling climate change, and provide lower costs and better access to affordable health care by lowering the eligibility age for Medicare.

It's been an honor to have received the endorsement of Common Cause in the past. I am proud to have worked with Common Cause on these vital issues for our democracy and look forward to continuing to do so.

Tell John Larson thank you.

Additional Comments

Take Action

icon-phone Call icon-letter Send Letter

Short Answer

The Question:

Candidate Reponse