The Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2007 () was a bill introduced in the

110th Congress The 110th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the Presidency of George W. Bush. It was composed of ...

of the U.S. on January 31, 2007, by Sen. Barack Obama, Democrat of Illinois and Sen. Chuck Schumer, Democrat of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. The bill was referred to the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary and on October 4, 2007, was referred to the Senate, although it never received a vote. A similar version of this bill was introduced by Obama in the 109th Congress on November 16, 2006 () "to protect Americans from tactics that intimidate voters and prevent them from exercising their right to vote on Election Day." During the 2006 mid-term elections, material was distributed by

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

in predominantly African American counties in Maryland falsely claiming that prominent African-American Democrats had endorsed the Republican candidates. The fliers were paid for and authorized by Senate candidate

Michael S. Steele Michael Stephen Steele (born October 19, 1958) is an American political commentator, attorney, and Republican Party politician. Steele served as the seventh lieutenant governor of Maryland from 2003 to 2007; he was the first African-American ...

and Governor Robert Ehrlich, and were widely decried as fraudulent by critics. "One of our most sacred rights as Americans is the right to make our voice heard at the polls," said Obama in his introductory remarks on the 2006 bill. "But too often, we hear reports of mysterious phone calls and mailers arriving just days before an election that seek to mislead and threaten voters to keep them from the polls. And those who engage in these deceptive and underhanded campaign tactics usually target voters living in minority or low-income neighborhoods. This legislation would ensure that for the first time, these incidents are fully investigated and that those found guilty are punished."

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Summary on GovTrack
Electoral fraud in the United States Works by Barack Obama Voter suppression Proposed legislation of the 110th United States Congress {{US-fed-statute-stub

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