Patagonia Joins Other Businesses, Voting Rights Groups in Calling for Senate Approval of the For The People Act

More than 70 business leaders pen letter to Senate calling for the passage of the For the People Act to protect and strengthen democracy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Ashlynn Profit, Ashlynn@CivicNation.org

(Washington, D.C.): Today, more than 70 of the country’s leading corporations joined When We All Vote, Vote.org and the Declaration for American Democracy Coalition (DFAD) in calling on the Senate to pass the For the People Act. The business leaders, representing Patagonia, ICM, ClassPass, Tumblr, Ben & Jerry’s and more, penned a letter to the Senate urging them to pass this landmark legislation, and called on more businesses to join the fight for fair and accessible elections. 

Answering President Biden’s call for a month of action to push for the passage of voting rights bills in Congress, When We All Vote, Vote.org and the Declaration for American Democracy Coalition are calling for more business leaders to step up. Passing the For the People Act is one of the most important ways to stop voter suppression at the state level and enact national standards for voting to ensure everyone has a say in key decisions including pandemic relief, criminal justice, immigration, healthcare and education.

With more than 400 bills in at least 48 states, lawmakers across the country are pushing unpopular voter suppression bills to silence Americans’ voices, especially the voices of Black, Brown, young and working class voters, and voters with disabilities. At least 14 states have enacted 22 new laws that restrict access to voting this year alone. States have cut early voting days and hours, implemented strict voter ID laws, made it illegal to bring food and water to voters waiting in long lines and limited access to ballot drop off locations.

Corporate America is uniquely positioned to use their power for meaningful change and ensure their employees, customers and communities can safely and freely cast their ballots. One study shows that 82 percent of Americans would be more favorable towards a company if they supported policies to make it easier for Americans to register to vote and cast their ballots, including 72 percent of Republicans and 92 percent of Democrats.   

View the full letter here. Several business leaders who signed the letter are available for comment. Interested members of the media should contact press@civicnation.org. 

The full list of companies that signed the letter in support of the For the People Act includes: &pizza, Adasina Social Capital Company, Amalgamated Bank, Ashby & Graff Real Estate, ATTN, Avocado Green Brands, Bad Robot Productions, Ben & Jerry’s, Black Economic Alliance, Blue Ridge Produce, C. Wolfe Software Engineering, Capricorn Investment Group, Centercorp Retail Properties, Chance Art Company, Clare V., ClassPass, Climate First Bank, Climate Positive Consulting, coasap, Collaborative Solutions, Countable, Eighty2degrees Design Studio, Evergreen Sustainability, LLC, Flixbus, Florida for Good, LLC, FundX Investment Group, Funsize, Corp., Greater Good Strategy Company, Gryphon Solutions, LLC, HigherRing, ICM, JLFG Communications, Justworks, Kangaroo Coffee, Legacy Vacation Resorts, Lime, LimeRed Company, Lingraphica, Manale Realty, Mediocre Creative, MeetUp, Montanya Distillers, Morris Recruiting and Consulting Company, MPOWERD, Namu Baru Inc., Narrative Food, National Hockey League, Natural Investments Company, New Leaf BioFuel, NJ Sustainable Business Council, Our Place, Ovonni Ventures, Patagonia, Public Good, Regenerative Rising, Richer Poorer, Ripley Rader, Rosebud Agency, Salt Palm Development, Shockwave Medical Inc., Signet Strategic Wealth Management, Social Goods, SunnySide Social Media, LLC, Symphony Advantage Inc., The Atlanta Dream (WNBA), The Capital Good Fund, The Skimm, Tierra Vista, Tony’s Chocolonely, Transcend, The Fearless Company, Transformative Wealth Management, LLC, Trillium Asset Management, Tumblr, Upworthy, Venner Consulting, Vulintus, Inc., Walk Your Talk Productions, Workforce & Organizational Research Center and Youth To The People.

If passed, the For the People Act would: Expand automatic voter registration, adding as many as 50 million people to voter rolls; Expand same-day and online voter registration for federal elections, which are especially important for young people and first-time voters; Allow for pre-registration for 16- and 17-year-olds so that when they get their driver’s license, they are also registered and ready to vote when they turn 18; Require two weeks of early voting for federal elections, including on the weekends and after work, and increased access to vote-by-mail; Make Election Day a national holiday; Restore the right to vote for people with felony convictions, which disproportionately impacts Black and Brown communities; Strengthen federal criminal penalties for those who misinform and intimidate people at the polls; Overhaul the campaign finance system to give ordinary Americans a greater voice in the political process and afford a more diverse array of people the opportunity to run; and Ban partisan gerrymandering and discriminatory voter purges.

ABOUT When We All Vote: 

When We All Vote is a leading national, nonpartisan initiative is on a mission to change the culture around voting and to increase participation in each and every election by helping to close the race and age gap. Created by Michelle Obama, When We All Vote brings together individuals, institutions, brands, and organizations to register new voters across the country and advance civic education for the entire family and voters of every age to build an informed and engaged electorate for today and generations to come. We empower our supporters and volunteers to take action through voting, advocating for their rights, and holding their elected officials accountable. 

In 2020, When We All Vote ran a robust, multifaceted campaign and reached more than 100 million people to educate them about the voting process and get them registered and ready to vote. The initiative also led in voter education, registration, and volunteer engagement and as a result, 512,000 people started or completed the voter registration process, and nearly 500 media, corporate, and nonprofit partners joined its efforts.

Michelle Obama launched When We All Vote in 2018 and is joined by fellow Co-Chairs Tom Hanks, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Janelle Monáe, Chris Paul, Faith Hill, Selena Gomez, Liza Koshy, Megan Rapinoe, Shonda Rhimes, Tracee Ellis Ross, Kerry Washington, and Rita Wilson.

When We All Vote is a key initiative within Civic Nation, a 501(c)(3) organization, and works with Civic Nation Action, a 501(c)(4). These organizations are homes for changemakers who inspire, educate, and activate people around the issues that will define this generation. 

ABOUT Vote.org:

Vote.org is the largest 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan voting registration and get-out-the-vote (GOTV) technology platform in America, with the goal of reaching historically underserved voters of color and underrepresented young voters. Through corporate and nonprofit partnerships, a large-scale community of grassroots donors, diverse coalition building, and influencer-driven outreach, Vote.org leverages innovative solutions that meet prospective voters where they engage and get their information, and has established its brand as the most trusted and accessible online resource for registering to vote and understanding how to cast your ballot.

In 2020, Vote.org ran the largest voter mobilization program in its history, reaching voters more than 650 million times, as well as signing up over 1,000 companies to provide paid time-off to vote for their employees. Over 39.4 million people sought deadlines, polling locations, and other essential voting information for each state through Vote.org, leading to more than 4.2 million people registering to vote, helping over 3.4 million request mail ballots, and setting records across the board with its engagement.

ABOUT Declaration for American Democracy:

The Declaration for American Democracy is an anti-oppression coalition working together to make the promise of democracy real for all of us. Our coalition includes over 220 groups from labor, racial justice, faith, environmental, women’s rights, good government, and many other important communities. Formed in 2018, we set out on a mission to take back our democracy and restore power to the people. We believe that we must build a democracy where everyone participates, every vote is counted, and everyone’s voice is heard.

Working together, we are committed to passing national standards, including the For the People Act, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and DC Statehood, to transform our political system and move our country closer to realizing the true promise of democracy. 

ABOUT Civic Nation:

Civic Nation is a nonpartisan, nonprofit home for changemakers who inspire, educate, and activate people around the issues that will define this generation. Civic Nation empowers and educates individuals, companies, institutions and organizations to drive culture, systems and policy change, working towards a more inclusive and equitable America. Six initiatives are a part of the Civic Nation family: When We All Vote, United State of Women, ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, End Rape On Campus, It’s On Us and Made to Save. 

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