Last week, the Supreme Court refused to stop a Texas law banning abortions after six weeks (before many women know they’re pregnant), violating the constitutional right to choose and establishing a dangerous precedent that could overturn Roe v. Wade and pave the way for states across the country to aggressively strip away our civil rights.

President Biden and Congress cannot sit idly by while fundamental rights are eviscerated by this Supreme Court.

The Federalist Society and other corporate-backed organizations have spent decades packing the courts, creating a right-wing majority that frequently votes against the will of the people and undermines basic constitutional principles.

Members of Congress have already introduced legislation to fix this imbalance. The Judiciary Act of 2021 would add four seats to the Supreme Court, reflecting the growth of the judiciary over the past 150 years. We must ensure this bill passes to restore legitimacy and balance to the Court, protect our democracy, and secure the rights of the American people.

To return to a balanced, nonpartisan Supreme Court and restore our democracy, Congress must pass the Judiciary Act and expand the Supreme Court.

It is not constitutionally mandated that there be nine justices on the Supreme Court. Congress has changed the number of justices on the Court before and it can do so again. Congress set the number of justices at nine in the Judiciary Act of 1869 in order to match the number of federal circuit courts. Today, however, there are thirteen circuit courts, resulting in a growing caseload that only nine justices cannot manage. The justices have taken fewer and fewer cases over time, as the caseload exceeds their capacity.

Meanwhile, Senate Republicans have breached the norms of Supreme Court appointments three times in the last five years, creating a solid right-wing majority at odds with the Constitution and the will of the people.

We cannot allow this erosion of our democracy and our constitutional values to continue unabated. Congress must restore legitimacy and balance to the federal judiciary and secure the rights of the American people by expanding the Supreme Court.