San Antonio State Rep adds the power of the chancla while criticizing election bill
San Antonio State Rep. Diego Bernal (TX-123) may have just coined a new voter rallying cry for South Texas during in an interview on MSNBC.
Bernal, one of the Texas Democrats that fled to Washington D.C. on July 12, was discussing the Republican-backed voting rights bill that passed the Texas Senate with NBC anchor Jonathan Capehart Monday night.
In the clip Bernal shared to Twitter this morning, he calls out a provision in the bill that would criminalize people helping their neighbors, friends and family go out and vote, creating a “trapdoor” for Texas voters. The provision asks people to take an oath saying they didn’t encourage or persuade someone to go vote.
If the person is unsure of what that oath means, it will discourage them from taking someone to go vote.
“What that means is if I say, ‘hey tia, or nana, or bubbe, come on, it’s Wednesday, let’s go vote. I promise you I’d take you. Get your chanclas. Let’s go do it,'” Bernal says. “And the penalty for that is criminal. So, if I don’t want to get myself in trouble, I might back off and say,’Nevermind.'”
Bernal “chanclas” quote resonated with others among the local Twittersphere, including former SA2020 CEO turned consultant Molly Cox.
“‘Grab your chanclas. We’re going voting,’ could be the new Bat signal for 2022.” Cox writes in the tweet.
Candace Venezuela, 2020 Democratic nominee for Texas’ 24th Congressional District, joined Cox in making “chanclas” a symbol of voter empowerment.
“All chanclas are voting chanclas, but I think I need chanclas designated for the purpose,” Venezuela writes in a tweet.
The Republican-led Texas House of Representatives passed voter suppression bills on July 13, a day after Texas Democrats fled to Washington D.C. to avoid voting on the bills during a special spring session.
At least 51 of the 67 Democratic members of the Texas House left for Washington D.C. — the amount needed for a quorum.
