While issues like funding the government and helping Ukraine have taken priority in recent weeks, there is a bipartisan effort building in Congress to overhaul the 135-year-old law that governs how the certification of results in presidential elections.

Established to ensure a peaceful transfer of power, after an election dispute, the Electoral Count Act of 1887 catapulted into the spotlight in early 2021 after President Donald Trump tried to use the law’s ambiguous language to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

“Donald Trump continues to tell the big lie that he actually won the election,” Sen. Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts) said. “He’s a sore loser, but he’s a threat to democracy.”

A threat to democracy is what some in Congress have said the Electoral Count Act represents if the law isn’t amended. Since the beginning of this year, representatives from both parties have been talking about ways to reform the law to reduce the possibility that what happened on January 6 2021, happens again.

“Right now, I’m heading a group that is working on updating the woefully deficient electoral Count Act to make very clear that the Vice President has absolutely no authority to overturn election results,” Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said.

Sen. Angus King, also of Maine, has been working towards the same goal in recent weeks. Last month, the Independent released a draft of the Electoral Count Modernization Act with Senators Amy Klobuchar and Dick Durbin.

While two of the three are Democrats — Collins, a Republican, insists the effort has bipartisan support.

“I really hope that this is something that can bring us together. It will make a big difference if we can get this passed to the integrity of the counting and certifying of federal elections,” Collins said.

In January 2021, Trump repeatedly pressured his Vice President, Mike Pence, to abandon his ceremonial role presiding over the certification of the election and reject the results. Pence rejected Trump’s demands, but the episode exposed weaknesses in the Electoral Count Act. King said that the changes being considered proposing would make it almost impossible for states to overturn election results, after the fact. Massachusetts Representative Jake Auchincloss says it is vital Congress take up any concerns about the election process before the 2024 presidential election.

“We are concerned about the future of American democracy,” said Rep. Jake Auchincloss.

Whether this effort succeeds remains to be seen. The legislation needs at least 10 Republican votes in the evenly divided Senate to surmount a filibuster. Some Republicans may be reluctant to support reforming the law, in fear of crossing Trump.