9 U.S. sports unions align against GOP-led voting restrictions
The National Basketball Players Association released a statement on Monday opposing voting restrictions enacted or being debated in state legislatures across the country.
The statement titled "Stand for Democracy" was co-signed by unions from eight other U.S. sports leagues. It calls for "every eligible voter" to have "an equal and fair opportunity to cast a ballot."
“We Stand for Democracy.
A Government of the people, by the people.
A beautifully American ideal, but a reality denied to many for much of this nation’s history.
As Americans, we know that in our democracy we should not expect to agree on everything.
However, regardless of our political affiliations, we believe the very foundation of our electoral process rests upon the ability of each of us to cast our ballots for the candidates of our choice.
For American democracy to work for any of us, we must ensure the right to vote for all of us.
We should all feel a responsibility to defend the right to vote and to oppose any discriminatory legislation or measures that restrict or prevent any eligible voter from having an equal and fair opportunity to cast a ballot.
Voting is the lifeblood of our democracy and we call upon all Americans to join us in taking a nonpartisan stand for this most basic and fundamental right of all Americans.”
Not every major sports union signed on
The National Football League Players Association, Women’s National Basketball Players Association, Major League Soccer Players Association, National Women’s Hockey League Players Association, National Women’s Soccer League Players Association, Professional Women’s Hockey League Players Association, United States Women’s National Team Players Association and Basketball Players Union co-signed the statement alongside the NBPA.
The Major League Baseball Players Association, the National Hockey League Players Association and the U.S. National Soccer Team Players Association did not sign the statement.
What are the unions standing against?
The statement arrives as states with Republican-led legislatures have proposed voting restrictions similar to the measures passed in Georgia in the aftermath of the 2020 elections. The Georgia law passed in March limits the number of drop boxes across the state, increases voter ID requirements and gives state-level officials in Republican-controlled Georgia power over county election boards that oversee ballot counts.
The law also makes it illegal for non-poll workers to provide food and water for people waiting in line to vote. Georgia has made news in recent elections elections for hours-long voting lines in minority neighborhoods that don't reflect what's seen in majority white neighborhoods.
Florida and Michigan have since passed similar voting restrictions while Texas and Arizona are among states debating doing the same.
Why are the restrictions put in place?
The restrictions are being put in place after election results that saw Democrats win the White House while taking control of the previously majority Republican U.S. Senate. Georgia voters flipped both of the state's previously GOP-held Senate seats to Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff and changed its electoral college vote from former President Donald Trump in 2016 to President Joe Biden in 2020.
Republicans have frequently cited widely debunked voter fraud theories in to justify the restrictions.
The shift in federal power occurred among record voting turnout, with several states expanding voting access like mail-in voting and drop boxes amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Athletes and teams played a role in promoting and expanding access with sports stadiums across the country opened as polling places in 2020.
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