The bipartisan legislation announced last month by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Joe Manchin (D–W.Va.), along with another eight Republicans and six Democrats, is a crucial step toward increasing trust in elections. The lack of faith in our election outcomes being voiced on both the left and right poses a serious threat to American self-government. Confidence that our representatives have been chosen by the voice of the people, as provided by our Constitution and laws, is the bedrock of the most successful republic in history.
Still, the path to passing the elections legislation in 2022 is fraught. Many believe the partisan divide in Congress is too great to be bridged, particularly with midterm elections in November and a busy congressional calendar.
A unique poll suggests surprising bipartisan consensus that Congress overcome the challenges to pass the proposed legislation. This poll is different than most because before answering, the more than 3,000 participants spent an hour or more reviewing a brief on election reforms that makes the strongest case for and against measures included in the bipartisan legislation. The participants are members of the CommonSense American program at the National Institute for Civil Discourse (NICD). They come from every state. About one quarter are Republicans, one quarter Democrats, and 45 percent independents.
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As with the bipartisan Senate group and elections experts, the bipartisan support does not stop with ECA updates. For example, our poll finds:
- 81 percent support for enhancing the federal criminal penalties for threatening election workers.
- 68 percent support sharing full transition resources with both candidates if there is a delay determining the winner of the presidential contest.
As challenging as bipartisan action is in our bitterly partisan times with hotly contested midterm elections fast approaching, few issues attract greater bipartisan support than commonsense election reforms. As crowded as the congressional calendar is, no issue is more fundamental than increasing trust in elections. With the stakes so high and the support so broad, Congress should act and act now to build confidence in the elections that define ours as a system by, for, and of the people.
Keith Allred is the Executive Director of the National Institute for Civil Discourse (NICD) and a former professor of negotiation and conflict resolution at the Harvard Kennedy School.