Dear IndiMarin Volunteers,

The Senate is scheduled to vote tonight on ending debate on the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. That vote is expected to fail due to GOP opposition, a move that will prompt Democrats to attempt to change the rules later that evening with a simple majority. That vote is also expected to fail. For all of us who fought so dearly for passage of these two bills that are crucial to protecting our democracy, these defeats are a crushing, albeit unsurprising, blow.

HOWEVER, there are many reasons to feel positive about our efforts, and hopeful for the day which WILL come when the filibuster is eliminated. We are sharing below a statement issued this morning by the influential advocacy group, Fix Our Senate.

"Today is a big day. This evening Leader Schumer will lead Senate Democrats in a vote for common sense rules changes to prevent Sen. McConnell from once again abusing the filibuster to prevent the Senate from taking action to protect voting rights and our democracy. And every senator will have to make a choice between defending democracy or defending an outdated and abused Senate rule.

No matter what happens today, we can say with absolute confidence that the filibuster is not long for this world. As the late Leader Reid said, it’s not a matter of if the filibuster will be eliminated, but when – and who is in charge when that happens.

We have made tremendous progress this past year. Forty-eight Senate Democrats now support reform. President Biden, a long-time supporter of the filibuster, now supports reform. Leader Schumer is now a vocal supporter of reform. Every Democrat running for Senate, from moderates to progressives, supports reform. And millions of people across the country now name the filibuster as a weapon of obstruction and know that they deserve a different path forward, one that ensures a Senate rule does not block action on so many of the promises Democrats made to voters.

Thank you to all of you who have stood with us and led forward this year in the fight to fix our broken Senate. However the vote goes tonight, the fight will continue tomorrow."

In related news, Emily's List, the largest funder of female Democratic candidates who support abortion rights, and which was by far Ms. Sinema’s biggest donor in her run for the Senate in 2018, issued a statement yesterday which said, in part, "If Sen. Sinema can not support a path forward for the passage of this legislation, we believe she undermines the foundations of our democracy, her own path to victory and also the mission of EMILY’s List, and we will be unable to endorse her moving forward." Further, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have hinted that they may support primary challengers to Sinema and Manchin.

So what is the next step in the fight to end the filibuster and pass voting rights legislation? We need to maintain our trifecta in Washington in November! And how will we do that in spite of the rigging of our election process by the GOP? By building an army of volunteers, like each of you, to make phone calls, send text messages, write postcards, knock on doors, reach out to friends, and donate what they are able to make it possible for Democrats to give the Biden Administration more time, and hopefully a bigger majority, to get our progressive agenda, including legislation on voting rights and filibuster reform, passed and signed into law.

To learn more about ways that you can contribute to this effort in 2022, please attend IndiMarin's Virtual Kick Off for 2022 on Sunday, January 30th at 4 PM to learn more about our programs to help Democrats #WinBackDemocracy in 2022. Sign up here.

Thank you for all you have done, and all you will continue to do, to help build a more just, caring and inclusive America!

The IndiMarin Steering Committee - Betsy, Amy, Betty, Joy, Laurie, Andie, Nikki and Susan