McClellan Led Historic 2020 Senate Resolution to Ratify ERA

Today, Sen. Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond) released the following statement on Attorney General Jason Miyares’s decision to remove Virginia from a lawsuit calling for the U.S. Archivist to recognize the complete and final adoption of the Equal Rights Amendment. Miyares stated that the proposal’s ratification period expired decades ago and that further litigation is fruitless.

“Two years ago, Virginia sent a bipartisan message that our Commonwealth believes equal rights for women should be enshrined in the U.S. Constitution,” McClellan said. “We came together across gender, party, racial and generational lines to guarantee equity under the law. For my family, my Commonwealth, and my country, it has been a long march toward equality. 

“Today’s unfortunate political decision by the Attorney General flies in the face of Virginia’s bipartisan vote in support of the Equal Rights Amendment. The people of Virginia have already spoken: It’s time for the Equal Rights Amendment to be ratified into the U.S. Constitution. The Attorney General’s decision today does not change the history that Virginia made in 2020, becoming the 38^th state to ratify the ERA.”

In 2020, Virginia became the 38th state to pass the Equal Rights Amendment, clearing the threshold for ratification. Sen. McClellan and Sen. Mamie Locke (D-Hampton) were the lead Senate patrons of Virginia’s resolution to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Former Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy (D-Prince William) led the ERA resolution in the House. 

In October 2021, McClellan testified before the U.S. House of Representatives, calling for the federal government to certify the ratification of Equal Rights Amendment. Video of her testimony is available here.