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Washington, D.C.—Congress has passed the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act as part of an omnibus appropriations bill. This new law shores up weaknesses in the Electoral Count Act of 1887 that were exploited during the last presidential election and will better protect the will of the voters and the peaceful transfer of power. As a stand-alone bill, the ECRA earned 39 bipartisan cosponsors in the Senate and was voted out of the Senate Rules Committee by a 14-1 vote.

In reaction to the passage of the ECRA, Genevieve Nadeau, counsel with Protect Democracy, released the following statement:

“We celebrate the passage of the Electoral Count Reform Act by Congress. This historic achievement is the result of thoughtful work by members of both chambers and their dedicated staffs, who were determined to improve the way that we cast and count electoral votes every four years. The ECRA shores up weaknesses in the 135-year-old statute that previously governed this process and will better protect the will of the voters and the transfer of presidential power. The ECRA has earned broad bipartisan support because it strengthens our democracy without providing an advantage to either political party. We recognize that there is still much work to do to protect and improve our democracy, but reforming the Electoral Count Act is a significant step in the right direction.”

Protect Democracy also commends the valuable updates to the Presidential Transition Act included in the omnibus legislation to ensure that a winning presidential candidate can move ahead with important transition work on a timely basis even in the event of a close or contested election. 

If you have additional questions or would like to interview one of our experts please reach out to Chris Crawford at [email protected] or (603)508-1359. For more information on updating the ECA, visit our website which is updated regularly and includes an ECRA explainer and FAQ on ECA reform.

Protect Democracy is a cross-ideological non-profit group dedicated to defeating the authoritarian threat, building more resilient democratic institutions, and protecting our freedom and liberal democracy.