Nick Saban, others urge Manchin to help pass voting rights bill

'Special Report' panel weighs in as lawmakers debate election reform and changing filibuster.

University of Alabama head football coach Nick Saban and other prominent sports figures with ties to West Virginia have urged U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin to support sweeping legislation to protect the right to vote.

Saban was joined by NBA Hall of Famer Jerry West, a fellow West Virginia native, in a Jan. 13 letter penned to the Democratic senator ahead of the Senate's debate of the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act. The Senate took up the bill Tuesday, and it appeared headed for defeat.

The package before the Senate would make Election Day a national holiday and require access to early voting and mail-in ballots that became overwhelmingly popular during the COVID-19 pandemic. Voting advocates nationwide have warned that Republican-led states have passed laws making it more difficult for Black Americans and others to vote by consolidating polling locations, requiring certain types of identification and ordering other changes.

In the letter, the group said the principles that help ensure fair and free elections are "now under intentional and unprecedented challenge."

Alabama head coach Nick Saban watches warm ups before the College Football Playoff championship football game against Georgia Monday, Jan. 10, 2022, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

"We are all certain that democracy is best when voting is open to everyone on a level playing field; the referees are neutral; and at the end of the game the final score is respected and accepted," the letter reads.

SCHUMER TO PROPOSE TALKING FILIBUSTER IN LAST-MINUTE ATTEMPT TO PERSUADE MANCHIN, SINEMA

The letter was also signed by former NFL players Oliver Luck