(DailyVantage.com) – House Republicans have introduced new voting legislation, entitled the American Confidence in Elections (ACE) Act, which would ensure election integrity by beefing up federal requirements on a variety of issues pertaining to federal elections. Since Congress has the authority to write regulations relating to the maintenance of their elections, the Committee on House Administration announced the move in an attempt to restore voter confidence and protect American elections.
The bill would require photo ID to cast a federal ballot to ensure verification and authenticity, bar non-citizens from voting to stop states from expanding the right to vote in federal elections to non-citizens, require annual maintenance of voter rolls to prevent them from becoming outdated, and prohibit unsolicited mail-in ballot distribution to voters.
Introduced last session by now-former Republican Congressman Rodney Davis of Illinois, then-co-sponsor and now-sponsor Republican Congressman Bryan Steil of Wisconsin is leading the charge for election integrity and is warning about potential deceptive tactics Democrats could use against the legislation. Chairman Steil spoke in favor of the ACE Act, saying that it makes it “easy to vote and hard to cheat.”
Rolling out in the state of Georgia, where Biden won the state’s 16 electors in the 2020 election, Republicans hope this conservative legislation may pass. Democrat critics believe that it would disenfranchise minority voters, threaten poll workers, and encourage denialism and falsehoods about the elections. However, in 2017, Democrats objected to the certification of electors to inaugurate Trump and circulated the Trump-Russia collusion narrative to discredit the results of the 2016 election, which proves counter to their assertions about elections today.
With the 2024 election rounding the corner as Republicans and Democrats gear up for their prospective primaries, bills like this will emerge as Congress also nears its general election. Currently, Republicans hold 222 seats, 4 seats above the threshold for a majority, and with Democrats typically receiving more votes in general election years, Republicans will have a series of competitive districts to win if they wish to retain the House of Representatives.
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