Pelosi Urges Senate Democrats, Manchin to Help Pass Voting Act Amid Controversy Over Filibuster

By Katherine Fung On 6/8/21 at 11:02 AM EDT

Politics Filibuster Voting Voting Rights Nancy Pelosi

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is urging Senate Democrats to help pass both the For the People Act (H.R. 1) and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Acts (H.R. 4), as the upper chamber of Congress struggles to pass legislation with a supermajority vote.

"When we pass H.R. 4, we must do so in a way that is ironclad constitutionally. This is what Congressman Butterfield and the House Judiciary Committee are hard at work now. H.R. 4 must be passed, but it will not be ready until the fall, and it is not a substitute for H.R. 1," Pelosi wrote to her colleagues in a Tuesday letter.

Nancy Pelosi Senate Democrats Joe Manchin Voting — Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) holds her weekly press conference at the U.S. Capitol on May 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. Pelosi spoke on the January 6th Commission and the police reform bill. Pelosi urged Senate Democrats to pass the For the People Act in a new letter on Tuesday. Kevin Dietsch/Getty

Pelosi's plea comes amid renewed controversy over the filibuster, which some Senate Democrats, like West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, have vowed not to eliminate.

On Sunday, Manchin defended his decision to vote against the voting rights legislation, arguing it was too wide-ranging. He also reaffirmed his position on the filibuster and stated that he would not change senate rules.

"I believe that partisan voting legislation will destroy the already weakening binds of our democracy, and for that reason, I will vote against the For the People Act. Furthermore, I will not vote to weaken or eliminate the filibuster," the moderate Democrat wrote in an op-ed published in the Charleston Gazette-Mail.

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.