to ‘‘protect the act of voting . . . and the election 
itself from corruption or fraud’’, id. at 661–62. 
(9) The Elections Clause thus grants Congress 
the authority to ensure that the administration of 
Federal elections is free of political bias or discrimi-
nation and that election officials are insulated from 
political influence or other forms of coercion in dis-
charging their duties in connection with Federal 
elections. 
(10) In some States, oversight of local election 
administrators has been allocated to State Election 
Boards, or special commissions formed by those 
boards, that are appointed by the prevailing political 
party in a State, as opposed to nonpartisan or elect-
ed office holders. 
(11) In certain newly enacted State policies, 
these appointed statewide election administrators 
have been granted wide latitude to suspend or re-
move local election administrators in cases where the 
statewide election administrators identify whatever 
the State deems to be a violation. There is no re-
quirement that there be a finding of intent by the 
local election administrator to commit the violation. 
(12) Local election administrators across the 
country can be suspended or removed according to 
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different standards, potentially exposing them to dif-
ferent political pressures or biases that could result 
in uneven administration of Federal elections. 
(13) The Elections Clause grants Congress the 
ultimate authority to ensure that oversight of State 
and local election administrators is fair and impar-
tial in order to ensure equitable and uniform admin-
istration of Federal elections. 
(b) RESTRICTION.— 
(1) STANDARD
FOR
REMOVAL
OF
A
LOCAL 
ELECTION
ADMINISTRATOR.—A statewide election 
administrator may only suspend, remove, or relieve 
the duties of a local election administrator in the 
State with respect to the administration of an elec-
tion for Federal office for inefficiency, neglect of 
duty, or malfeasance in office. 
(2) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Any local election ad-
ministrator suspended, removed, or otherwise 
relieved of duties in violation of paragraph (1) 
with respect to the administration of an election 
for Federal office or against whom any pro-
ceeding for suspension, removal, or relief from 
duty in violation of paragraph (1) with respect 
to the administration of an election for Federal 
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office may be pending, may bring an action in 
an appropriate district court of the United 
States for declaratory or injunctive relief with 
respect to the violation. Any such action shall 
name as the defendant the statewide election 
administrator responsible for the adverse ac-
tion. The district court shall, to the extent prac-
ticable, expedite any such proceeding. 
(B) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—Any ac-
tion brought under this subsection must be 
commenced not later than one year after the 
date of the suspension, removal, relief from du-
ties, or commencement of the proceeding to re-
move, suspend, or relieve the duties of a local 
election administrator with respect to the ad-
ministration of an election for Federal office. 
(3) ATTORNEY’S FEES.—In any action or pro-
ceeding under this subsection, the court may allow 
a prevailing plaintiff, other than the United States, 
reasonable attorney’s fees as part of the costs, and 
may include expert fees as part of the attorney’s fee. 
The term ‘‘prevailing plaintiff’’ means a plaintiff 
that substantially prevails pursuant to a judicial or 
administrative judgment or order, or an enforceable 
written agreement. 
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(4) REMOVAL OF STATE PROCEEDINGS TO FED-
ERAL COURT.—A local election administrator who is 
subject to an administrative or judicial proceeding 
for suspension, removal, or relief from duty by a 
statewide election administrator with respect to the 
administration of an election for Federal office may 
remove the proceeding to an appropriate district 
court of the United States. Any order remanding a 
case to the State court or agency from which it was 
removed under this subsection shall be reviewable by 
appeal or otherwise. 
(5) RIGHT
OF
UNITED
STATES
TO
INTER-
VENE.— 
(A) NOTICE
TO
ATTORNEY
GENERAL.— 
Whenever any administrative or judicial pro-
ceeding is brought to suspend, remove, or re-
lieve the duties of any local election adminis-
trator by a statewide election administrator 
with respect to the administration of an election 
for Federal office, the statewide election admin-
istrator who initiated such proceeding shall de-
liver a copy of the pleadings instituting the pro-
ceeding to the Assistant Attorney General for 
the Civil Rights Division of the Department of 
Justice. The local election administrator against 
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whom such proceeding is brought may also de-
liver such pleadings to the Assistant Attorney 
General. 
(B) RIGHT TO INTERVENE.—The United 
States may intervene in any administrative or 
judicial proceeding brought to suspend, remove, 
or relieve the duties of any local election admin-
istrator by a statewide election administrator 
with respect to the administration of an election 
for Federal office and in any action initiated 
pursuant to paragraph (2) or in any removal 
pursuant to paragraph (4). 
(6) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the fol-
lowing definitions apply: 
(A) ELECTION.—The term ‘‘election’’ has 
the meaning given the term in section 301(1) of 
the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 
U.S.C. 30101(1)). 
(B) FEDERAL OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Fed-
eral office’’ has the meaning given the term in 
section 301(3) of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(3)). 
(C) LOCAL ELECTION ADMINISTRATOR.— 
The term ‘‘local election administrator’’ means, 
with respect to a local jurisdiction in a State, 
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the individual or entity responsible for the ad-
ministration of elections for Federal office in 
the local jurisdiction. 
(D) 
STATEWIDE
ELECTION
ADMINIS-
TRATOR.—The term ‘‘Statewide election admin-
istrator’’ means, with respect to a State, the in-
dividual or entity responsible for the adminis-
tration of elections for Federal office in the 
State on a statewide basis. 
SEC. 5. PROTECTIONS FOR VOTERS ON ELECTION DAY. 
(a) REQUIREMENT.—Subtitle A of title III of the 
Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) 
is amended by inserting after section 303 the following 
new section: 
‘‘SEC. 303A. VOTER PROTECTION REQUIREMENTS. 
‘‘(a) REQUIREMENTS FOR CHALLENGES BY PERSONS 
OTHER THAN ELECTION OFFICIALS.— 
‘‘(1) REQUIREMENTS
FOR
CHALLENGES.—No 
person, other than a State or local election official, 
shall submit a formal challenge to an individual’s eli-
gibility to register to vote in an election for Federal 
office or to vote in an election for Federal office un-
less that challenge is supported by personal knowl-
edge with respect to each individual challenged re-
garding the grounds for ineligibility which is— 
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‘‘(A) documented in writing; and 
‘‘(B) subject to an oath or attestation 
under penalty of perjury that the challenger has 
a good faith factual basis to believe that the in-
dividual who is the subject of the challenge is 
ineligible to register to vote or vote in that elec-
tion, except a challenge which is based on the 
age, race, ethnicity, or national origin of the in-
dividual who is the subject of the challenge may 
not be considered to have a good faith factual 
basis for purposes of this subparagraph. 
‘‘(2) PROHIBITION
ON
CHALLENGES
ON
OR 
NEAR DATE OF ELECTION.—No person, other than 
a State or local election official, shall be permitted— 
‘‘(A) to challenge an individual’s eligibility 
to vote in an election for Federal office on any 
day on which the individual votes in person on 
grounds that could have been made in advance 
of such day, or 
‘‘(B) to challenge an individual’s eligibility 
to register to vote in an election for Federal of-
fice or to vote in an election for Federal office 
less than 10 days before the election unless the 
individual registered to vote less than 20 days 
before the election. 
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‘‘(b) BUFFER RULE.—A person who is serving as a 
poll observer with respect to an election for Federal office 
may not come within 8 feet of a voter or ballot at a polling 
location during any period of voting (including any period 
of early voting) in such election. 
‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply 
with respect to elections for Federal office occurring on 
and after January 1, 2022.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO VOL-
UNTARY GUIDANCE.—Section 311(b) of such Act (52 
U.S.C. 21101(b)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 
(2); 
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(3) in the case of the recommendations with 
respect to section 303A, June 30, 2022.’’. 
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO EN-
FORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) 
is amended by striking ‘‘and 303’’ and inserting ‘‘303, and 
303A’’. 
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(d) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to section 303 the following: 
‘‘Sec. 303A. Voter protection requirements.’’. 
Æ 
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