Former President Obama expresses support for Manchin's voting rights compromise

Former President Barack Obama has expressed support for a compromise plan proposed by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., as an alternative to the For the People Act.

Former President Barack Obama has expressed support for a compromise plan proposed by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., as an alternative to the landmark election reform bill set for a key vote in the Senate Tuesday, including some changes other Democrats on Capitol Hill have opposed. "The bill itself, which is called the For the People Act, is a product of compromise, an effort by maybe the most conservative Democrat in the Senate or maybe the most conservative Democrat in Congress, Joe Manchin of West Virginia to come up with some common-sense reforms that the majority of Americans agree with, that Democrats and Republicans can agree with," Obama said on a phone call with National Democratic Redistricting Committee volunteers Monday, giving a seal of approval to Manchin's efforts to find a middle ground. "The bill that’s going to be debated, including Senator Manchin’s changes, would address ... many of the concerns and issues that I’ve just discussed," Obama said. Ticking off the provisions in the For the People Act he approves of, Obama said, "It would mandate at least 15 days of early voting before elections. It would ban partisan gerrymandering so state legislatures controlled by one party can’t redraw the electoral map in a way that gives them an advantage. It would restore some of the protections in the Voting Rights Act to prevent states from making it harder for some people to vote. And it would also require powerful special interest groups to disclose their election-related spending.”