12 Oct 2022 BPC Action Applauds Bipartisan Momentum on Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, Urges Final Passage in Government Reform

The Bipartisan Policy Center Action applauds Sens. Klobuchar (D-MN), Blunt (R-MO), and the Senate Rules Committee for overwhelmingly passing the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, which builds on the strong work of a number of bipartisan senators. The Electoral Count Act of 1887 is antiquated and has been misused by both parties at different times in history to place partisan interests above the will of the people. The orderly transfer of power is a keystone of U.S. democracy and it is time to provide a clearer, fairer process that is less prone to abuse.

The Senate committee bill makes positive changes to the statute and pre-empts future partisan efforts to manipulate it, an important goal for protecting the stability of our economy and inspiring confidence in our system of government across the globe. The bill ensures that Congress will receive and consider electoral votes that reflect the results of the election and that any objections will be serious, evidence-based, and rare. With these changes, we can be confident that the person elected in November will be inaugurated on January 20th.

Strong bipartisan support for the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act sends a message to the nation and the world that guardrails on our presidential electoral system are fair and will be respected. Recent action by the Senate Rules Committee suggests a viable and effective path for achieving this outcome and we urge Congress to build on this momentum and pass the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act.