Voter Empowerment Act of 2026
Key claim: A newly introduced House bill would require states to offer automatic, online, and same-day voter registration, early and no-excuse mail voting with drop boxes, bar voter-caging purges, restore federal voting rights to people with past felony convictions who are not currently serving a sentence, and permanently reauthorize the Election Assistance Commission.
Abstract
(HR8078 · 119th Congress) Voter Empowerment Act of 2026 This bill expands voter registration and voting access. Specifically, the bill expands voter registration by requiring states to (1) make available online voter registration, (2) establish automatic voter registration systems, (3) permit same-day voter registration, and (4) accept voter registration applications from individuals under age 18. Further, the bill limits removing voters from voter rolls and prohibits interference with voter registration or voting. Next, the bill requires states to allow individuals with disabilities to use absentee registration procedures and to vote by absentee ballot in federal elections. The bill also prohibits voter caging (the practice of sending mail to addresses on voter rolls, compiling a list of the undeliverable mail, and using the list to remove registered voters from voter rolls). Next, the bill expands voting access by requiring states to allow early voting and voting by mail without additional conditions. It also requires states to provide secured drop boxes at which individuals may drop off their completed absentee ballots. In addition, the bill declares that the right of a U.S. citizen to vote in any federal election shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has been convicted of a criminal offense unless, at the time of the election, such individual is serving a felony sentence. Finally, the bill permanently reauthorizes the Election Assistance Commission (EAC). It also directs the EAC to make grants to states for specified activities, including to implement automatic voter registration systems. Latest action (2026-03-25): Referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, Oversight and Government Reform, Science, Space, and Technology, Education and Workforce, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Why this matters
The bill would federalize a broad slate of voter-access rules — automatic, online, and same-day registration; early and mail voting with drop boxes; limits on purge practices; and voting rights restoration for people with past felony convictions — which today vary widely by state and materially affect turnout among young voters, movers, low-income voters, and returning citizens. Permanent reauthorization of the Election Assistance Commission would also lock in a federal role in election administration standards. As an introduced-only measure, its practical effect is contingent on further legislative action, and provisions such as felony-voting restoration and mandatory mail voting are contested on federalism and election-integrity grounds.