3 U.S.C. § 1
Section 1 · Time of appointing electors
This is the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 29 court decisions — leading case George Bush v. Albert Gore (2000)
Most recently applied in Watson v. Republican National Committee (U.S. 2026, slip opinion) (June 2026)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
The electors of President and Vice President shall be appointed, in each State, on election day, in accordance with the laws of the State enacted prior to election day.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Editorial Notes
Prior Provisions
A prior section 1, act June 25, 1948, ch. 644, 62 Stat. 672, related to time of appointing electors, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 117–328, div. P, title I, §102(a), Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5233.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Short Title of 2022 Amendment
Pub. L. 117–328, div. P, §1, Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5233, provided that: "This division [enacting this section and section 22 of this title, amending sections 6, 7, 9 to 13, 15 to 18, and 21 of this title, repealing this section and sections 2 and 14 of this title, enacting provisions set out as notes under this section, and amending provisions set out as a note under section 102 of this title] may be cited as the 'Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022'."
Pub. L. 117–328, div. P, title I, §101, Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5233, provided that: "This title [enacting this section and section 22 of this title, amending sections 6, 7, 9 to 13, 15 to 18, and 21 of this title, and repealing this section and sections 2 and 14 of this title] may be cited as the 'Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022'."
Pub. L. 117–328, div. P, title II, §201, Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5241, provided that: "This title [amending provisions set out as a note under section 102 of this title] may be cited as the 'Presidential Transition Improvement Act'."
Short Title of 2020 Amendment
Pub. L. 116–121, §1, Mar. 3, 2020, 134 Stat. 138, provided that: "This Act [amending provisions set out as a note under section 102 of this title] may be cited as the 'Presidential Transition Enhancement Act of 2019'."
Short Title of 2010 Amendment
Pub. L. 111–283, §1, Oct. 15, 2010, 124 Stat. 3045, provided that: "This Act [enacting provisions set out as a note under section 102 of this title and amending provisions set out as notes under section 102 of this title, section 1101 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, and section 435b of Title 50, War and National Defense] may be cited as the 'Pre-Election Presidential Transition Act of 2010'."
Short Title of 1996 Amendment
Pub. L. 104–331, §1(a), Oct. 26, 1996, 110 Stat. 4053, provided that: "This Act [enacting sections 401, 402, 411 to 417, 421, 425, 431, 435, 451 to 456, and 471 of this title and sections 1296, 1413, and 3901 to 3908 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure, amending sections 1346 and 2402 of Title 28, repealing section 1219 of Title 2, The Congress, and enacting provisions set out as notes under section 401 of this title, section 1219 of Title 2, and section 1296 of Title 28] may be cited as the 'Presidential and Executive Office Accountability Act'."
Short Title of 1988 Amendment
Pub. L. 100–398, §1, Aug. 17, 1988, 102 Stat. 985, provided that: "This Act [amending sections 3345, 3348, and 5723 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, and enacting and amending provisions set out as notes under section 102 of this title] may be cited as the 'Presidential Transitions Effectiveness Act'."
Constitutional Provisions
Time of choosing electors, see Const. Art. 2, §1, cl. 3.