JERSEY CITY, NJ - NOVEMBER 05: A man cast his vote at a polling booth on November 5, 2019 in Jersey City, New Jersey. Voters will decide on a ballot measure to regulate the short-term rental industry , if approved, the new rules will include creating an annual 60-day cap and current hosts would also have to obtain permits from the city. (Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images)

New Jersey’s primary election is today. Regardless of who you vote for, one thing is clear: If you want to have a voice in determining the future of both your local community and our nation, you should vote. In New Jersey, unfortunately that can be easier said than done.

Although Gov. Phil Murphy has taken some great steps to help make voting more accessible, the state still has room to strengthen voting rights further. The state is home to some of America’s worst racial disparities in voter turnout. Additionally, New Jersey citizens have faced language barriers at the polls, and New Jerseyans with disabilities have even been denied opportunities to register to vote.

Just across the Hudson River, prospects look brighter for New Yorkers casting their ballots. This is in part due to the fact that in 2022, New York passed a state-level voting rights act — the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of New York. This law helps remove barriers to the voting booth by prohibiting voter suppression, expanding language assistance for voters, prohibiting vote dilution, and more.

At the time of this column’s publication, six other states have passed similar state-level voting rights acts. New Jersey has a chance to join them with its own voting rights act, known as the John R. Lewis Voter Empowerment Act of New Jersey, or NJVRA for short.

You may be wondering why states like New Jersey need to pass their own acts when we have the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965. Simply put, the federal act does not fully protect voters. Many of the protections it offered have been gutted by the Supreme Court, and judges across the country are continuing to undermine its surviving protections. As I explained in a recent report for the Center for American Progress, while federal legislation awaits action in Congress, state voting rights acts can help fill these holes and even offer expanded protections for voters.

Voters of color continue to face disproportionate barriers to casting their ballots in New Jersey. The NJVRA would protect them both from voter suppression and from vote dilution methods that weaken their right to have a say in the outcome of an election. What’s more, this legislation would establish a state version of a key voter protection tool called preclearance, which prevents jurisdictions with a history of discrimination from passing discriminatory voting policies — stopping these policies before they can harm voters.

Citizens who speak limited English also face steep voting barriers in New Jersey. While the federal Voting Rights Act requires that certain jurisdictions provide language assistance to voters, its reach is limited. As a result, many New Jersey citizens fall outside the law’s protections. The NJVRA would expand access above the levels currently provided by the federal Voting Rights Act — meaning more citizens could exercise their right to vote.

On an even broader scale, this voting rights act would help New Jersey strengthen its democracy by protecting voters and election workers from deception, intimidation, obstruction, and even violence. Over the past few election cycles, political violence and partisan attempts to interfere with fair elections have spiked to alarming levels across the country.

It’s already been over half a century since the federal Voting Rights Act passed. The NJVRA would help ensure every voter can safely cast their ballot and know with confidence that it will be counted according to law.

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