Rep. Cleaver Votes to Reform Electoral Count Act, Protect American Democracy from Election Subversion

Press Release

Today, U.S. Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO) voted in favor of H.R. 8873, the Presidential Election Reform Act, a bipartisan bill that would reform the outdated Electoral Count Act to protect our democracy against efforts at election subversion and ensure the electoral votes tallied by Congress accurately reflect each State's vote for President. The Presidential Election Reform Act would ensure that Congress counts the votes of the Electoral College as required by the Constitution and without any benefit to either political party, including by ensuring that Congress receives a single accurate electoral certificate from each State, requiring that States select electors in accordance with state law existing as of the date of the election, and providing a federal judicial remedy in the event that a state governor refuses to certify the lawful result of a presidential election.

"The January 6th assault on the Capitol was an attack on our democracy, on the rule of law, and on our 235-year-old Constitution--and Congress has an obligation to ensure that any future attempts to steal an election from the American people have no possibility of success," said Congressman Cleaver. "With the bipartisan Presidential Election Reform Act, we have studied the variety of tactics utilized by the former president to try to overturn a free and fair election, and we have taken critical steps to shore up vulnerabilities in the Electoral Count Act of 1887. While I believe this is an important step that creates stronger guardrails that will help prevent another assault on our Constitution, we must remain vigilant to the rising threats to democracy in America and around the world."

The Presidential Election Reform Act takes four critical steps to strengthen the integrity of future presidential elections, including:

Reaffirming that the Vice President has no authority or discretion to reject official slates of electors or delay the count in any material way;
Limiting the type of objections that can be raised during certification, adhering to only those outlined in our Constitution. All objections raised during the certification process would require one-third of each chamber to be entertained, and a majority to be sustained;
Requiring Governors to transmit lawful election results to Congress in a timely fashion--or be compelled by a federal court, which ensures that no rogue Governor can unlawfully subvert the will of the people; and
Making abundantly clear that States cannot change the rules governing an election after it has occurred, which would prevent radical state legislators from attempting to alter the outcome of an election after the election has been held.

"What makes America truly exceptional is our ability to peacefully settle political disagreements through the rule of law and free and fair elections," said Congressman Cleaver. "With their violent attempt to disrupt the certification of the presidential election, the insurrectionists of January 6th took a wrecking ball to the hallmark of American democracy--the peaceful transfer of power. While this legislation cannot prevent demagogues from lying to the American people in an effort to incite violence and undermine the constitutional principles that have led our nation to greatness, it provides further protection against extreme attempts to bend the rule of law in favor of one political party and against the will of the people. Sadly, that has become a critically important step that Congress must take."

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