{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://scanlon.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2058", "Scanlon and Congressional Colleagues Host Hearing on Protecting American Democracy and the Right to Vote at Widener University", "2026-09-14", "2026", "2026-09", "Democrat", "House", "PA", "Mary Gay Scanlon", "S001205", "scanlon.house.gov", "scanlon", "https://scanlon.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx", "scraper", "Chester, PA \u2013 Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05) and Ranking Member Joe Morelle (NY-25), Committee on House Administration, today hosted a shadow hearing with Reps. Norma Torres (CA-35), Madeleine Dean (PA-04), and Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06) featuring presentations from experts about protecting American democracy, including election security, electoral reforms, voting rights, and anti-corruption efforts.\n\nExperts at today\u2019s shadow hearing included:\n\nOmar Noureldin, Senior Vice President of Policy and Litigation, Common Cause\n\nAmy Widestrom, Executive Director, League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania\n\nLauren Cristella, President and CEO, Committee of Seventy\n\nMarian Schneider, Adjunct Professor of Law, Villanova University and former PA election official\n\nThis shadow hearing takes place amid widespread concerns over proposals by Republicans and the Trump Administration to restrict voting and allow federal takeover of state elections. Proposals include the SAVE America Act, which could potentially disenfranchise hundreds of millions of American citizens, and efforts to restrict voting by mail.\n\n\u201cOur democracy ultimately depends on Americans choosing to participate in it. When the White House sows propaganda and injects chaos in our elections, it suppresses voter participation,\u201d said Rep. Scanlon. \u201cAmericans should have confidence that when they cast a lawful ballot, that ballot will be counted. I\u2019m grateful to the experts who joined today\u2019s hearing to provide truthful information about our elections, and the various ways that every American can participate in and be an ambassador for our democracy.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe President and his allies want to take over this election,\u201d said Ranking Member Morelle. \u201cOur planned, targeted responses include litigation, effective community organization and mobilization, and promoting early voting. This work is ongoing every day. It\u2019s iterative, and there\u2019s still a long road ahead, but I\u2019m confident that through this work we will be more prepared than ever this fall and beyond.\u201d\n\nWatch a recorded livestream of the event here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-09-15T09:50:21Z", "2026-09-15T09:52:05Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://scanlon.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2058"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.249590888619423, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}