Manchin to vote against bill federalizing elections, dealing major blow to Democrats

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., declared Sunday he will oppose his party’s legislation to federalize how elections are conducted, dealing a severe blow to Democratic passage in the evenly divided Senate.

The For The People Act would among other things ban voter ID requirements, mandate mail-in voting options and begin registering voters at age 16. It has faced uniform Republican opposition.

In an op-ed published in the Charleston Gazette-Mail, Manchin declared the bill as too partisan and divisive  

He also revealed he would not support eliminating the filibuster that requires 60 votes to consider most pieces of legislation in the Senate. On that point, he is joining a second Democrat, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona.

“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," Manchin wrote.

He added he would fight to “seek bipartisan compromise no matter how difficult and to develop the political bonds that end divisions and help unite the country we love.”