Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley said he thinks he will vote for Electoral Count Act changes
U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley on Wednesday expressed support for proposed changes to the Electoral Count Act, which would clarify rules governing presidential elections and the counting of electoral votes.
"I have not read the bill, but I have read a lot about the bill," Grassley, a Republican, told reporters Wednesday. "And I think that I'm going to vote for it."
Grassley said he would wait to read it before making a final decision about his vote.
The bipartisan effort to amend the Electoral Count Act of 1887 comes after former President Donald Trump and his allies attempted to exploit ambiguities in the law following the 2020 election to reject electoral votes that were cast for President Joe Biden.
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The bill will need 60 votes to overcome a filibuster in the evenly divided Senate. Even if all 50 Senate Democrats are in favor, it will need at least 10 Republican votes. Nine Republicans were part of the bipartisan negotiations on the bill, and Grassley's support could bring them to 10.
The legislation would clarify that the vice president’s role in presiding over the counting of electoral votes is purely ceremonial, ensuring that the vice president would not have the power to unilaterally reject or accept electoral votes.
Trump and his allies unsuccessfully pressured former Vice President Mike Pence to interfere with the counting of electoral votes over objections from White House attorneys, according to testimony given to the House Jan. 6 committee.
Grassley said that change is among the reasons he would support the bill.
"I don't know what the... law specifically says on this subject," he said. "It probably doesn't say anything, and then people thought well, maybe the vice president has some discretion. He should not have had this discretion ever. And this law will make it clear that he won't have that discretion."
Grassley said he also supports a provision that would raise the threshold for objecting to electors in Congress. It would require one-fifth of the House and one-fifth of the Senate to bring an objection, a much higher bar than the current law, which allows one member of the House and one member of the Senate to bring an objection.
"This is going to make those challenges much more legitimate if there's a reason for having them," he said.
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The measure also would require Congress accept as valid only one slate of electors submitted by each state and certified by that state’s governor or another official. In 2020, multiple states attempted to submit alternate slates of presidential electors without the legal basis to do so.
Derek Muller, a University of Iowa law professor who teaches election law, testified Wednesday at a hearing of the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, speaking in favor of the proposal.
“At every turn, the bill offers more clarity, more precision and more stability,” Muller said.
Muller said there are significant risks if Congress fails to pass the legislation and leaves the current Electoral Count Act in place without changes.
“Some have attempted to exploit ambiguities over the years, most significantly in 2020,” he said. “To leave those in place ahead of the 2024 election is to invite serious mischief.”
USA Today contributed to this report.
Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR.
Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.