154
Breyer, J., dissenting
after the close 1876 Hayes-Tilden Presidential election, spec-ifies that, after States have tried to resolve disputes (through "judicial" or other means), Congress is the body primarily authorized to resolve remaining disputes. See Electoral Count Act of 1887, 24 Stat. 373, 3 U. S. C. §§ 5, 6, and 15.
The legislative history of the Act makes clear its intent to commit the power to resolve such disputes to Congress, rather than the courts:
"The two Houses are, by the Constitution, authorized to make the count of electoral votes. They can only count legal votes, and in doing so must determine, from the best evidence to be had, what are legal votes . . . .
. . . . . "The power to determine rests with the two houses, and there is no other constitutional tribunal." H. R. Rep. No. 1638, 49th Cong., 1st Sess., 2 (1886) (report submitted by Rep. Caldwell, Select Committee on the Election of President and Vice-President).
The Member of Congress who introduced the Act added:
"The power to judge of the legality of the votes is a necessary consequent of the power to count. The existence of this power is of absolute necessity to the preservation of the Government. The interests of all the States in their relations to each other in the Federal Union demand that the ultimate tribunal to decide upon the election of President should be a constituent body, in which the States in their federal relationships and the people in their sovereign capacity should be represented." 18 Cong. Rec. 30 (1886) (remarks of Rep. Caldwell).
"Under the Constitution who else could decide? Who is nearer to the State in determining a question of vital importance to the whole union of States than the constituent body upon whom the Constitution has devolved the duty to count the vote?" Id., at 31.
Page: Index Previous 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007