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REP. JOYCE BEATTY SEEKS TO BLOCK TRUMP FROM CLOSING AND DESTROYING THE KENNEDY CENTER IN EMERGENCY FILING
Press Release | March 6, 2026
Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (OH-03) today filed an emergency request to block the Trump administration’s unlawful closure and demolition of the Kennedy Center, which President Trump announced last month. The filing seeks to halt the firings of employees, the canceling of performances and any other steps towards closing, demolishing or renovating the facility.
DEMOCRACY DEFENDERS ACTION LAUDS ACTION ON ELECTION INTERFERENCE
Press Release | February 25, 2026
This afternoon, Sen. Alex Padilla and members of the Senate Rules Committee will hold a spotlight hearing focused on President Trump’s continued attacks on free and fair elections. The hearing comes as the president and his enablers in Congress are continuing to push disinformation and conspiracy theories while manufacturing “evidence” of election problems in the hopes of making drastic changes to the nation’s elections.
REP. MCIVER, DEMOCRACY DEFENDERS ACTION WARN DEMOCRACY IS “ON THE BRINK” IN STATE OF THE UNION PREBUTTAL ADDRESS
Press Release | February 24, 2026
Today, in coordination with Democracy Defenders Action, U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver (NJ-10) delivered a prebuttal address ahead of the President’s State of the Union. In her remarks, McIver spoke about the mounting pressures facing American institutions and the growing strain placed on the rule of law under the Trump administration. She warned that the country is witnessing an unprecedented concentration of executive power and that defending democracy against this overreach is not a partisan project but a constitutional obligation.
VICTORY: SUPREME COURT CLEARS WAY FOR CALIFORNIA REDISTRICTING
Press Release | February 4, 2026
With a one-sentence decision, the U.S. Supreme Court today cleared the way for California’s Proposition 50 map to go into effect for the 2026 midterm elections. The decision leaves in place the ruling by a three-judge federal panel last month.
GOP LEADERS ADVANCE WHITE HOUSE-ALIGNED ELECTION CHANGES THAT THREATEN VOTER ACCESS
Press Release | February 4, 2026
The following is a statement from Tianna Mays, legal director at Democracy Defenders Action, regarding President Trump’s recent calls to “nationalize” elections and congressional efforts to advance the SAVE Act and the MEGA Act. The first proposal would restrict voter access and the second would strip states of their constitutional authority over elections.
DDA URGES MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO HALT STOCK TRADES DURING ALL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS
Press Release | February 3, 2026
As the federal government remains in a partial shutdown, Democracy Defenders Action (DDA) today urged all members of Congress to suspend stock and securities trading for themselves and their families for the duration of any shutdown. The organization also released a report showing that nearly 60 Members of Congress were actively trading stocks and other securities totalling up to nearly $100 million during last year’s government shutdown.
STATEMENT ON TRUMP'S ATTEMPT TO CLOSE KENNEDY CENTER FOLLOWING LOSS OF ARTISTS AND AUDIENCES
Press Release | February 1, 2026
In late December, Democracy Defenders Action and the Washington Litigation Group sued President Trump and others on behalf of Congresswoman Joyce Beatty to stop the unlawful renaming of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. They released the following statements in response to President Trump’s social media post announcing the Kennedy Center will close for renovations.
ORGANIZATIONS URGE SUPREME COURT TO REJECT PROPOSITION 50 CHALLENGE
Press Release | January 29, 2026
In a new brief filed today before the U.S. Supreme Court, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) argued that, despite the plaintiffs’ erroneous claims that the plan is a racial gerrymander designed to “favor Hispanic voters,” Proposition 50 is clearly a partisan gerrymander. The Supreme Court has consistently said partisan gerrymanders are not justiciable by the federal courts. Democracy Defenders Action intervened in the case on behalf of LULAC.
FEDERAL COURT CLEARS WAY FOR CALIFORNIA REDISTRICTING
Press Release | January 14, 2026
A three-judge-panel today cleared the way for Proposition 50, the California constitutional amendment that authorizes a new map redrawing California’s congressional districts, to go into effect for 2026 elections. The ruling followed a three-day hearing in December where expert and fact witnesses, including those put forward by League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and represented by Democracy Defenders Action, testified in defense of the redistricting legislation. The decision comes amid a wave of redistricting litigation nationwide and follows recent Supreme Court rulings that have allowed states broad latitude to redraw maps based on partisan considerations.
NEW HOUSE REPUBLICAN STOCK TRADING PROPOSAL IS A SMOKESCREEN FOR CONTINUED CORRUPTION
Press Release | January 13, 2026
House Republican leadership has introduced the so-called Stop Insider Trading Act. Despite its name, the proposal is not a stock or insider trading ban at all, and it fails to meet even the most basic standards for meaningful reform. It allows members of Congress to keep their existing stock holdings, and even worse, it allows them to invest and trade in cryptocurrency, commodities, and other speculative investments like private funds, venture capital funds, and hedge funds—precisely the kinds of assets that can be used to hide conflicts of interest.