Sacramento, CA – Democracy advocates celebrated this week as the Senate Standing Committee on Elections and Constitutional Amendments passed Senate Bills 1164 and 1360 by Senator Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside). The timely legislative action, sponsored by the California Democracy Partnership, updates the landmark California Voting Rights Act to add new protections against voter discrimination and bolster our democracy which is under threat from unrelenting federal attacks.

The California Voting Rights Act of 2026 comes as recent polling found that two-thirds of California voters believe our democracy is under attack and voiced overwhelming support for state lawmakers to strengthen voter protections.

“We cannot stand by while Donald Trump and his allies attempt to dismantle our democracy piece by piece,” said Senator Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside), the author of the California Voting Rights Act of 2026. “I’m proud to author the California Voting Rights Act of 2026 to preserve democracy in California. We must never allow the suppression or dilution of the votes of historically disenfranchised communities or discrimination against limited-English-proficient voters. CVRA 2026 will bolster defenses against voter suppression and improve access to the ballot by ensuring more California voters can access election materials in their native languages. We must act against the chaos emanating from the White House and protect the essential right of California voters to choose their leaders at the ballot box.”

The CVRA of 2026 will:

• Prohibit Voter Suppression: Confront threats to voter participation and access to voting opportunities that occur through discriminatory barriers to the ballot.
• Prohibit Vote Dilution: Protect against district maps or election systems that weaken or silence the voting power of communities of color. 
• Stop Voting Discrimination Before It Occurs: Require jurisdictions with a recent history of discrimination to obtain approval before making certain changes to voting practices. 
• Ensure Voters Can Directly Protect Their Rights: As voters’ ability to use the federal VRA comes under attack, ensure Californians can go to state court to enforce voting rights. 
• Require Courts to Interpret Laws in Favor of Voters: Direct courts to interpret laws and exercise discretion in favor of broad access and equal participation in the democratic process. 
• Guarantee the federal VRA’s language assistance requirements under state law: Codify Section 203 of the VRA’s requirement to provide in-language votable ballots and all other election materials to groups that meet a certain threshold in a county.
• Expand upon current Section 203 language coverage: Lower Section 203’s numerical threshold for assistance from 10K to 5K of adult citizens in a county, and expand upon Section 203’s language minority categories to include all language groups.
• Streamline and clarify the steps for language groups to receive assistance in voting: Gives groups not adequately captured in the Census the opportunity to show, through other sources, that they should qualify for language assistance. 

The California Democracy Partnership, a growing group of civil justice, voting rights and labor organizations, was represented at the hearing by Kristin Nimmers of the California Black Power Network, Adam Lioz of Legal Defense Fund, Ramla Sahid of Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans, Julia Gomez ACLU of Southern California and Deanna Kitamura, Asian Law Caucus. They emphasized the importance of passing the CVRA of 2026 urgently to modernize our state’s voting rights act and protect vulnerable populations from the constant barrage of federal attacks on our democracy. 

 “The CVRA of 2026 is a vital step toward a more just and inclusive democracy. It closes loopholes by strengthening the CVRA to cover district-based systems, stops repeat violations before they occur, and gives communities and individuals stronger tools to fight voter suppression. By ensuring our laws are interpreted to protect voters, this legislation continues historical efforts to build a democracy that is upheld by fairness, accountability, and due process.” added Kristin Nimmers, Policy & Campaigns Manager of the Black Power Network.

 “In the face of unrelenting federal attacks on Black voters, California can reassert its national leadership and once again set an example for pro-voter states by expanding and modernizing its landmark California Voting Rights Act,” said Adam Lioz, Senior Policy Counsel for the Legal Defense Fund.

Earlier this year Riverside Sheriff Chad Bianco seized over 650,000 ballots cast in a 2025 special election, claiming he was investigating election fraud. So-called fraud has been the motivation behind many recent attempts to upend our democratic process, but in reality recent studies by the Brennan Center note that instances of fraud were incredibly rare. An individual is more likely to be struck by lightning than to cast a fraudulent ballot. 

Senate Bill 1164 (Cervantes) was also heard and passed in the Senate Judiciary Committee, in addition to Senate Elections. SB 1164 and 1360 both now move on to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Learn more about the California Voting Rights Act of 2026 here: https://www.cademocracypartnership.org/CAVRA26

Learn more about the California Democracy Partnership here: https://www.cademocracypartnership.org

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Anchored in the belief that our democracy should be by the people, and for the people, the California Democracy Partnership is a growing group of racial justice, civil rights, union and community organizations focused on making sure our democracy works for everyone who calls California home. The California Democracy Partnership includes AAPIs for Civic Empowerment Education Fund, ACLU of Northern California, ACLU of Southern California, Asian Law Caucus, California Black Power Network, California Common Cause, California Environmental Voters Education Fund, Catalyst California, CHIRLA, League of Women Voters of California, Legal Defense Fund, MALDEF, Inland Empire United Education Fund, Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans, Power California, SEIU CA and the UCLA Voting Rights Project.

Originally posted on cademocracypartnership.org.