Philadelphia has always been a laboratory for American democracy. And last month, our city was able to renew its democratic trailblazer status by hosting the first-ever state-level gathering of the America in One Room project.

America In One Room: Pennsylvania, or A1R-PA, brought together 175 registered Pennsylvania voters representing our state’s demographic, political and geographic diversity. Over four days, participants met in small groups to discuss and debate some of the most contentious issues facing our country and heard from reputable experts on the issues from both sides of an issue. There were also keynote speakers like former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Governor Josh Shapiro, Philadelphia state Senator Joe Picozzi, and me.

I believe that because voting is central to how our government serves our communities, it ought to be as convenient and as secure as possible.

To measure how opinions shifted during the event, participants completed a survey at the beginning to mark their initial thoughts on an issue, and they completed the same survey at the conclusion to see how views had evolved.

 One of my legislative priorities, voting accessibility, was a key topic at the forum.

Make voting accessible

Voting accessibility is important to me, because the right to vote has been our nation’s guiding principle and central to our identity since our founding almost 250 years ago. But in many cases, throughout our history, there have been barriers that restricted certain people from voting. I believe that because voting is central to how our government serves our communities, it ought to be as convenient and as secure as possible. 

Earlier this year I introduced the Voting Rights Protection Act (HB 1396), a bill that would make it easier for eligible voters to cast their ballots, make our elections more secure and help county officials administer elections.

My bill, which garnered support from county commissioners and well-known voting rights organizations across the state, would make voting easier by:

• • Increasing the number of secure ballot drop boxes in each county.
  • Making in-person voting available up to 11 days prior to an election.

It would also make our elections more secure by:

• • Installing video cameras at ballot drop boxes.
  • Requiring county boards of election to transition to electronic poll books by 2027.
  • Creating a post-election audit process.

It would help streamline our elections by:

• • Allowing mail-in ballots to be prepared for counting (but not actually counted) before Election Day.
  • Clarifying the law regarding absentee and mail-in ballots.

These measures, which would modernize Pennsylvania election law, were some of the policies discussed at A1R-PA.

My bill’s key components were widely supported. For example, a measure to allow 11 days of early, in-person voting was supported by 61 percent of participants in the initial survey and increased to 71 percent in the concluding survey. Support for the measure grew among each of the political parties with a majority of each parties’ participants supporting the idea.

Even in polarized political times, Americans — and in this case, Pennsylvanians — can work through tough topics together if we take the time to listen, learn and respect one another.

Other measures in my bill also saw their support rise during the event.

While the House passed my bill in May, it still needs to be considered in the Senate. The A1R data will help shape negotiations because we have evidence of how real Pennsylvanians feel about measures like early, in-person voting. This input is critical to crafting good public policy.

 Voting access was just one of the topics the group worked through during the event, but a key takeaway from the four days was to show that even in polarized political times, Americans — and in this case, Pennsylvanians — can work through tough topics together if we take the time to listen, learn and respect one another.

PA Speaker of the House Joanna McClinton represents portions of Philadelphia and Delaware counties. She is the first woman and second African American to serve as speaker of the nation’s oldest continuously operating state legislative body.

The Citizen welcomes guest commentary from community members who represent that it is their own work and their own opinion based on true facts that they know firsthand.

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