House passes Jan. 6 panel's bill to reform Electoral Count Act

The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill reforming the Electoral Count Act after the select committee investigating Jan. 6 introduced changes to prevent a repeat of the chaotic episode.

Jan. 6 committee members Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., and Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., introduced the plan on Monday. Among the recommended changes were a clarification that the vice president's role in certifying election results is purely "ministerial." Vice President Mike Pence faced pressure from former President Donald Trump's supporters to intervene in the certification process. It will also require one-third of House members to back challenges to election results.

The measure passed 229-203, with nine Republicans voting for the bill, according to Axios. All of them are either retiring at the end of the term or lost primary challenges to pro-Trump candidates. Cheney, for her part, was decisively defeated in her own primary after becoming a leading anti-Trump Republican. She has since vowed to commit herself to prevent a Trump political comeback.

In the Senate, lawmakers are mulling a different version of the reform, one that seeks to raise the number of lawmakers in either chamber needed to object to election results from just one to one-fifth, per the outlet. Lofgren has confirmed she is working to reconcile differences between the House and Senate bills.