On February 16^th, Senator Frank Lautenberg introduced the Federal Election Integrity Act of 2005. Cosponsored by Senators Kerry, Boxer and Clinton, S. 391 amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to prohibit chief State election administration officials from actively participating in federal electoral campaigns. The 2000 presidential election in Florida and the 2004 presidential election in Ohio both demonstrated how a chief election official can appear to face a conflict of interest when they are required to certify a close election involving a campaign in which they participate. Although no evidence of wrongdoing was found in either of these cases, even the possibility of this type of conflict of interest harms the perception of electoral integrity. This legislation would ensure that this type of conflict of interest never arises for federal elections; however, it must be complemented with legislation at the state level to also guarantee the integrity of state elections.  [Read S. 391]

Please contact your Senators and ask them to support this legislation.