Presidents Day is a reminder of the need for better elections

What's become an official commemoration of all U.S. presidents in general carries a special symbolic meaning this year.

Presidents Day was established more than a half-century ago. The holiday had roots in the annual national celebration of George Washington's birthday; Abraham Lincoln was celebrated every February in New York, but not in all the states. In the end, the combined holiday became one three-day weekend for store sales and school vacations.

The controversies of today bear relevance to Washington in particular. After leading his underdog Continental Army through the American Revolution, Washington willingly retired as commander in chief. With it, he passed up the palpable chance to become a monarch, which would have been standard for its time.

Washington was elected twice to the U.S. presidency. He chose not to seek a third term. The legitimacy of temporary, elected power won critical value in the young republic.

Now, in what sometimes feels like a topsy-turvy world, we cope with the institutional aftermath of ex-President Donald Trump's unfortunate effort to retroactively rig an election he lost. Anyone willing to look can see his futile power grab, and how his stingy denial of our spirit of peaceful succession trashed Washington’s legacy.

Before the 2024 election, lawmakers have a chance to repair the Electoral Count Act — the awkward law that led some Republicans to actually accept the idea that Trump could legitimately get his vice president to overturn Joe Biden's clear win. Former Vice President Mike Pence has finally, if blandly, noted he lacked the power to subvert a national election that fateful Jan. 6. That's obvious enough, but now it is time for Congress to remove any doubt for the future — by saying so in the law.

Changes in the Electoral Count Act of 1887 are unfortunately necessary. The act, which the Trump camp cited in its self-serving gambit, was always confusing. Legal experts have said so ever since its passage in response to the congressionally decided Tilden-Hayes election of 1876.

Sensible leaders in both parties are discussing ways to keep fake allegations and slick maneuvering in a few states from nullifying the will of the people. There are several possible routes to ECA reform.

One is to clarify the vice president's strictly ministerial role in the final count. He presides over the joint session of Congress where electoral votes are counted. The process cannot be allowed to afford a cynical opportunity for tampering. There are also proposals under discussion that would keep states from reversing presidential results after the fact, as Trump blatantly lobbied to do. The judicial branch should quickly resolve any disputes over who has been tapped to represent states in the Electoral College. Once federal courts find electors are properly certified by the state, Congress has no excuse but to count those votes.

Reforming the ECA and closing its potential loopholes can help conserve the great American invention — a presidency and Congress of the people.