Proposed changes to the Electoral Count Act would clarify rules for presidential elections and the counting of electoral votes.
"I've read a lot about the bill, but I haven't read it yet," said the Republican. I think I'll vote for it.
After reading it, he would make a final decision.
The bipartisan effort to amend the Electoral Count Act of 1887 comes after former President Donald Trump and his allies tried to exploit ambiguities in the law after the 2020 election to reject electoral votes that were cast for President Joe Biden.
Bipartisan group of senators announced a deal.
The bill needs 60 votes to pass in the Senate. It will require at least 10 Republican votes if all 50 Senate Democrats are in favor. Nine Republicans were part of the bipartisan negotiations on the bill, which could bring them to ten.
The legislation would make it clear that the vice president does not have the power to reject or accept electoral votes.
According to testimony given to the House, Trump and his allies tried to get former Vice President Mike Pence to interfere with the counting of electoral votes.
Changes are one of the reasons he would support the bill.
He said he didn't know what the law said about it. "Maybe the vice president has some discretion, because it probably doesn't say anything." He shouldn't have had this authority in the first place. This law will make it clear that he will not have that discretion.
The threshold for objecting to electors in Congress would be raised. The current law allows one member of the House and one member of the Senate to bring an objection, but it requires 20% of the House and 20% of the Senate.
If there is a reason for having them, this will make them more legitimate.
The new Iowa Poll shows Chuck and Mike in the Senate race.
The measure would require congress to accept only one slate of electors from each state. Multiple states tried to submit alternate slates of presidential electors in 2020.
A University of Iowa law professor spoke in favor of the proposal at a Senate hearing.
The bill offers more clarity, more precision and more stability.
Muller said there are significant risks if the current Electoral Count Act is not changed.
The most significant attempt to exploit ambiguities was in 2020. It's a bad idea to leave those in place before the next election.
USA Today made a contribution to the report.
Brianne Pfannenstiel works for the Register. She can be reached at bpfann@mdreg.com. You can follow her on the social networking site.
Stephen is a political reporter for the Register. He can be reached by email or phone. You can follow him on the social networking site.
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