[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 43 (Monday, April 14, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S3125]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REID:
  S. 571. A bill to establish a uniform poll closing time throughout 
the continental United States for Presidential general elections; to 
the Committee on Rules and Administration.


                  the uniform poll closing act of 1997

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation which 
will set a uniform poll closing time for the continental United States. 
Election officials and political scientists for years have believed 
that early announcements, based on exit polls, discourage thousands of 
people from voting and affect the outcome of close races for other 
Federal, State and local offices. Less than 50 percent of eligible 
voters actually voted last year. As public officials, we have a 
responsibility to do everything we can to encourage voting, not 
dissuade it. Uniform poll closing times is a step in this direction.
  We are all aware that the controversy over early network projections 
is not a new one. Senator Barry Goldwater introduced a bill after the 
1960 election prohibiting radio broadcast of any Presidential election 
returns until after midnight on election day. Network predictions 4 
years later of Goldwater's landslide loss, and of Richard Nixon's 
landslide victory in 1972, spawned several Senate bills to muzzle radio 
and television. But none were enacted.
  In 1980, when new technology made it unnecessary for networks to wait 
for actual returns, the furor over early projections was brought to its 
highest pitch. In that year, voters in the West were told at 5 p.m., 
hours before their polls closed, who the next President of the United 
States would be. The three major networks trumpeted Ronald Reagan's 
victory long before the polls had closed in their States. After the 
election, our colleagues, Representatives Tim Wirth and Al Swift began 
a congressional search for a way to prevent early calls of elections. 
Numerous ideas were discussed as solutions to the problem of early 
projections based on exit polls, but there was no consensus. In 
addition to uniform poll closing times, shifting election day to 
Sunday, spreading voting over 2 days, making election day a national 
holiday and forbidding the networks from issuing predictions were 
proposed. Of course the best solution would be voluntary restraint on 
the part of the networks, but that has proven to be a failure.
  My legislation simply states that each polling place in the 
continental United States must close, with respect to a Presidential 
general election, at 10 p.m. eastern standard time. This means the 
polls with close at 7 p.m. Pacific time, 8 p.m. mountain time and 9 
p.m. central time. I do not believe these times are unreasonable. It is 
my hope that this legislation will revive the debate over the use of 
exit polls. I welcome my colleagues to work with me for a solution.

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