Though I am a Maine voter who often disagrees with the actions of Sen. Susan Collins in Congress, Collins’ efforts to reform the Electoral Count Act have my complete support. There is, however, one crucial improvement to the draft legislation that would close a loophole that, left open, could become the cause of considerable electoral mischief in the 2024 election and beyond.

Quoting from a recent piece in Slate: “Sen. Angus King … inquired about a fringe legal theory that the Supreme Court will be considering in a case to be argued this fall. King expressed concern about the ‘independent state legislature theory’ that the reactionary court majority may adopt. He asked whether it might undercut what the (Electoral Count Reform Act) seeks to achieve.

“Under an extreme version of this theory, state legislatures can purportedly decide whatever they want in presidential elections, without court review or concern for the majority vote, even after the ballots have been cast.”

Congress should explicitly state in the Electoral Count Reform Act that no state can override the designation by its voters of their chosen candidate. I hope and trust that Sen. Collins and Sen. Joe Manchin will take steps to close any loophole before irreparable harm can be done by those intent on using the levers of government to undo our democracy.

Michael McMillen
Harborside