VOTE Act

This bill would push states to use English-only ballots in federal elections. If a state prints ballots with any non-English text, it would lose certain federal funds for running those elections during that fiscal year. It also ends current rules that require some places to offer voting materials—like ballots and registration info—in other languages for people with limited English. In short, it ties federal election money to English-only ballots and removes federal language assistance requirements under the Voting Rights Act.

Key points:

• Who is affected: Voters with limited English, state and local election offices.
• What changes: States must use English-only ballots to keep certain federal election funds; language assistance requirements under the Voting Rights Act are eliminated.
• When it applies: Any fiscal year a state uses non-English ballots for federal elections, it would be ineligible for those federal funds.