Search

Search bills, members, committees and pages...

Sign In

S.J.Res. 186

U.S. Senate•In Senate Committee

Summary

S.J.Res. 186, “A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the fundamental right to vote”, was introduced in the Senate on Apr 27, 2026 by Sen. Richard Durbin (D) with 9 co-sponsors. It was referred to Judiciary, and last saw action on Apr 27, 2026: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text: CR S2055).

Record

Text

S.J.Res. 186 has 9 co-sponsors.

sjr186/introduced-in-senate.txt
119 SJ 186 IS: Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the fundamental right to vote.
 U.S. Senate
 2026-04-27
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
  IIA
  119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
  S. J. RES. 186
  IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
  April 27, 2026
  Mr. Durbin  (for himself,  Mr. Merkley ,  Ms.
  Hirono ,  Mr. Van Hollen ,
  Ms. Warren ,  Mr.
  Sanders ,  Mr. Blumenthal ,
  Mr. Padilla ,  Mr.
  Markey , and  Mr. Welch )
  introduced the following joint resolution; which was read twice and referred to the
  Committee on the
  Judiciary
  JOINT RESOLUTION
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United
  States relative to the fundamental right to vote.
That the following article is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States:
 —
1.
Every citizen of the United States, who is of legal voting age, shall have the fundamental right to vote in any public election held in the jurisdiction in which the citizen resides.
2.
The fundamental right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State or political subdivision within a State unless such denial or abridgment is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest and is the least restrictive means of furthering that compelling governmental interest.
3.
The portion of section 2 of the fourteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States that consists of the phrase  or other crime,  is repealed.
4.
The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article and protect against any denial or abridgement of the fundamental right to vote by legislation.
  .

Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

  1. Introduced2026-04-27
  2. Passed Senate
  3. Passed House
  4. Conference
  5. To President
  6. Became Law

CRS Summary

The summaries are the Congressional Research Service’s, one per stage. Read them in full.

Introduced in Senate Apr 27, 2026

sjr186/introduced-in-senate.md

Shown Here:
Introduced in Senate (04/27/2026)

This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment related to the fundamental right to vote.

Specifically, it grants every U.S. citizen of legal voting age the fundamental right to vote in any public election held in the jurisdiction in which the citizen resides.

Next, it specifies that the fundamental right to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, a state, or a political subdivision of a state, unless the denial or abridgment is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest by the least restrictive means.

Finally, it repeals a specific portion of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which allows for the denial of the right to vote based on crime. (Currently, some states disallow individuals from voting, either temporarily or indefinitely, after incarceration for a felony.)

Sponsors

Sen. Richard Durbin (D) sponsors S.J.Res. 186, and 9 members have co-sponsored it, all of them from the day it was introduced.

Committees

S.J.Res. 186 went before 1 committee: Judiciary.

Judiciary
Judiciary
Referred To · Apr 27, 2026

Actions

S.J.Res. 186 has taken 2 actions since Apr 27, 2026.

ChamberAction
Apr 27, 2026
Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text: CR S2055)Judiciary Committee
Apr 27, 2026
—
Introduced in Senate

Votes

S.J.Res. 186 has not gone to a roll call.

Titles

S.J.Res. 186 goes by 2 titles.

  • A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the fundamental right to vote. — Official Title as Introduced
  • A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to the fundamental right to vote. — Display Title

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files S.J.Res. 186 under Government Operations and Politics, one of its 31 policy areas.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; S.J.Res. 186’s is Government Operations and Politics.

sjres186/policy-areas.txt
Government Operations and PoliticsAgriculture and FoodAnimalsArmed Forces and National SecurityArts, Culture, ReligionCivil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesCommerceCongressCrime and Law EnforcementEconomics and Public FinanceEducationEmergency ManagementEnergyEnvironmental ProtectionFamiliesFinance and Financial SectorForeign Trade and International FinanceHealthHousing and Community DevelopmentImmigrationInternational AffairsLabor and EmploymentLawNative AmericansPublic Lands and Natural ResourcesScience, Technology, CommunicationsSocial WelfareSports and RecreationTaxationTransportation and Public WorksWater Resources Development

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com