Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-T.X., was arrested and led away in handcuffs by Capitol Police on Thursday, a local Democratic group announced in a press release.
The former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) was arrested outside the Hart Senate Office Building during a protest against voting integrity bills.
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Jackson Lee resigned from her position at the CBC in 2015 after a sexual assault controversy. It was alleged in a lawsuit by a former staffer who claimed Jackson Lee fired them in retaliation for planned legal actions against her supervisor in Jackson Lee’s office.
She posted a picture of her arrest on social media —
I will NEVER stop fighting for Voting Rights! The time is NOW to move the voting rights bills in the US Senate forward!! Enough is enough. #GoodTrouble pic.twitter.com/XmwNrjgpuX
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) July 29, 2021
“Once again we see a Black woman at the forefront of defending our civil rights and leading the fight to save our fragile democracy. Congresswoman Jackson Lee understands we are at a pivotal moment in the history of our nation, where our sacred right to vote is under grave threat. She recognizes that we all must take action to protect this right,” local Harris County Democratic Party leader Odus Evbagharu said in a statement.
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Jackson Lee is the congressperson that represents Harris County, Texas in Congress.
“The marchers today — and everyone participating in the Black Women Leaders and Allies Voting Rights day of action — are sending a message to Americans: Our elected officials have the power to protect our vote and our voice. They are in a position right now to support and defend our democracy, and they must act now,” Evbagharu’s statement read.
Lee has objected to certifying electors after three Democratic presidential defeats.
In 2001, Jackson Lee and other House Democrats objected to certifying the electors from Florida. When no senator joined their objection, it was dismissed by then-Vice President Al Gore.
In 2005, Jackson Lee and 30 other House Democrats objected to certifying the electors from Ohio based on a conspiracy theory that the Koch Brothers had rigged the voting machines in the state in favor of then-President George W. Bush over John Kerry.
And in 2021, Jackson Lee objected to the certification of South Carolina, North Carolina, and Wyoming’s electoral votes in the 2016 presidential election. Again, when no senator joined her efforts to overturn the election, her objection was dismissed.
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