Letter to Members of the NYS Congressional Delegation: Congress Must Pass Critical Electoral Count Act Reforms Before End of Term

SUMMARY

On November 28, the City Bar joined with civic organizations NYPRIG and Reinvent Albany in urging members of the New York State Congressional to prioritize passage of Electoral Count Act reform before the end of the year.  The groups believe the House’s Presidential Election Reform Act (H.R. 8873)(Rep. Lofgren D-CA and Rep. Cheney R-WY) and Senate’s Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act (S.4573)(Sen. Collins R-ME and Sen. Manchin D-WV), which have both received bipartisan support, should be reconciled and passed without delay.

ADVOCACY

ACTION ALERT: Help the City Bar urge Congress to pass Electoral Count Act reform before the end of the year!

REPORT

Dear Members of New York State Congressional Delegation,

On behalf of the undersigned civic organizations, we urge members of the New York State Congressional Delegation to support ongoing efforts to pass critical reforms to the Electoral Count Act (ECA). We believe the House’s Presidential Election Reform Act (H.R. 8873)(Rep. Lofgren D-CA and Rep. Cheney R-WY) and Senate’s Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act (S.4573)(Sen. Collins R-ME and Sen. Manchin D-WV), which have both received bipartisan support, should be reconciled and passed without delay.

These bills address provisions of the outdated 1887 Electoral Count Act by clarifying the role of the vice-president, as presiding officer of Congress during the ratification of the Electoral College votes cast by the fifty states and Washington DC. Both bills make clear, correctly, that the vice-president’s role during this process is ministerial. The bills also emphasize the importance of and respect for the voters of each state by clarifying that no changes can be made as to selection of a state’s electors after election day.

While the House bill and Senate bill broadly take a similar approach, there are some differences between the proposals. Our groups take no position here on the differences between the bills. Our message is that the House and Senate should work collaboratively to address those differences and not let this opportunity for crucial bipartisan reform pass by.

Once the selection of presidential electors is submitted to a state’s voters, a republican form of government requires that the will of those voters in choosing their leadership must be respected.  We believe that protecting the rights of eligible voters in each state to vote and to have their votes counted is equally important to a functioning democracy.  Accordingly, our organizations urge Congress not to forgo this opportunity to adopt critical ECA reforms needed in order to avoid subversion of future presidential elections and ensure that the composition of each state’s electoral delegation accurately reflects the results of a free and fair election in that state.  It is critical that Congress adopt ECA reform before the end of the year.

Thank you for your consideration,

Blair Horner
Executive Director
N.Y. Public Interest Research Group

John Kaehny
Executive Director
Reinvent Albany

Susan J. Kohlmann
President
New York City Bar Association