3 U.S.C. § 6
Section 6 · Credentials of electors; transmission to Archivist of the United States and to Congress; public inspection
Amended 4 times on record
Applied in 6 court decisions — leading case Ankeny v. Governor of State of Indiana (2009)
Most recently applied in United States v. Larry Brock (March 2024)
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 certificates of ascertainment of appointment of electors received by the Archivist of the United States under section 5 shall—
(1) be preserved for one year;
(2) be a part of the public records of such office; and
(3) be open to public inspection.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2022—Pub. L. 117–328 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, section related to credentials of electors, transmission to Archivist of the United States and to Congress, and public inspection.
1984—Pub. L. 98–497 substituted "Archivist of the United States" for "Administrator of General Services" in section catchline and wherever appearing in text and "National Archives and Records Administration" for "General Services Administration".
1951—Act Oct. 31, 1951, substituted "Administrator of General Services" for "Secretary of State" in section catchline and several places in text, and for "Secretary of State of the United States" in one place, and "General Services Administration" for "State Department".
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date of 1984 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 98–497 effective Apr. 1, 1985, see section 301 of Pub. L. 98–497, set out as a note under section 2102 of Title 44, Public Printing and Documents.