Cranley pledges to support voting rights

Today, Democrat John Cranley signed a pledge to the people of the 1st Congressional District that he would fight for voting rights.

Cranley, who is running against Republican Rep. Steve Chabot, was joined by civil rights leader Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, Rep. Artur Davis, D-Ala., and former vice mayor Alicia Reece at a news event to commemorate the signing of his pledge.

Cranley explained that the pledge is more than a promise to support the Voting Rights Act, which is pending in Congress - as stated in yesterday's blog entry. It's to stand up against anything that hurts people's voting rights, such as a bill supported by Chabot that bars nonprofits from getting federal funding if they engage in voter education or get-out-the vote drives.

Here is the text of his latest pledge:

Whereas, the right to vote is a hallmark of American freedom; and

Whereas, the right to vote has not always been readily available to all Americans; and

Whereas, recent elections and actions by Congress have revealed that there are still forces within our country who will go to considerable lengths to make it more difficult for some Americans to exercise the right to vote; and

Whereas, every branch of government, and especially the United States Congress, should take whatever steps necessary to ensure that no American will ever be unfairly denied the right to cast a vote, and whereas Congress should take steps to prevent anyone from being discouraged from voting;

Therefore, I hereby proclaim that as an elected official, I will continue to work to uphold the precious right to vote and remove any and all barriers intended to discourage Americans from exercising that right; and

Further proclaim that, upon election to the United States House of Representatives, I will always vote to uphold the Voting Rights Act and support efforts to make it easier for Americans to take full advantage of the right to vote.

Proclaimed today, on the Seventh Day of July, 2006 by:

John Cranley, Candidate for the United States House of Representatives from Ohio's First District.

Now, about all those pledges...

“There will be more,” Cranley said Friday. “I’ll be signing a number of pledges during this campaign so that people know exactly, on specific issues, how to hold me accountable.”