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By Congressman A. Donald McEachin

Although Congress was in recess recently, several important votes occurred including the House passage of H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, to ensure the right to vote is protected.

Voting is among the most sacred rights afforded to Americans, which is why I am proud to be an original cosponsor of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and help pass this historic legislation. Congressman Lewis and other warriors in the Civil Rights movement fought, and even died, to protect the right to vote. Voting rights should not be a partisan issue, yet we are seeing coordinated state-level attacks on voter protections across the nation. H.R. 4 will help ensure national standards for voting rights and safeguard Americans’ access to the ballot box.

There are also several contests in the upcoming months that my constituents can participate in. This includes the annual VA-04 photography contest, open to all residents in the district. Please send photos to VA04.Projects@Mail.house.gov by Sept. 30, 2021, with your full name, the locality of your residence and where the photo was taken. The Fourth District is a beautiful location with coastlines, rivers, unique urban vistas, and other scenery; therefore, I encourage you to send in your entries. For more information, visit my website at mceachin.house.gov.

My office has also started taking submissions for the Congressional App Challenge. Open to all students who are residents of or attend school in VA-04, the App Challenge is a time for students interested in learning code and computer science to create an original software application. The winner(s) will be eligible to have their app displayed in the U.S. Capitol, featured on the U.S. House of Representatives website, and will be invited to attend a Capitol Hill reception. The deadline for entries is Nov. 1, 2021, and details for this contest also can be found on my website.

Lastly, I wanted to take this opportunity to express my profound sympathy to the families and friends of the servicemembers who lost their lives in the terrorist attack last month in Afghanistan. These military members have been and remain true heroes.

I commend the tireless work of the United States military and State Department officials who risked their lives to evacuate as many Americans, diplomats, civilian personnel, SIV-holders, and other Afghan allies out of the country as possible.

While the war in Afghanistan is over, efforts to resettle and support all those who were evacuated are ongoing. For information on how you can help, how to start a case with my office, and other helpful resources, visit my website.

Congressman Donald McEachin represents Virginia’s 4th Congressional District.