Unions are pressing for federal election reform in the wake of the chaos and irregularities in the Florida presidential vote.

At its January meeting, the 54-member AFL-CIO Executive Council called on the federal government to carry out a comprehensive overhaul of the nation’s electoral system.

“The nation must now act to ensure that the wholesale disenfranchisement of voters in Florida and elsewhere never be repeated,” the statement said. “The AFL-CIO will work for reform anchored in basic principles fundamental to any democracy. The right to vote is a right guaranteed to all, not a privilege reserved for the well-educated, the affluent, or the well-connected.”

The labor movement says electoral reform must include:

• universal voter registration
  
• strict enforcement of voting rights
  
• upgrading equipment
  
• safeguards to ensure that every vote gets counted
  

The AFL-CIO proposed making voting easier by enacting a national holiday for elections or holding multi-day or weekend elections, as well as encouraging early voting and the use of mail-in ballots.

In January, the AFL-CIO also expressed support for a lawsuit filed by the NAACP and other civil rights groups that cited widespread voting rights violations in the Florida presidential election.

On President George W. Bush’s Inauguration Day, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka participated in a “Fairness and Democracy” march by thousands of union, civil rights, religious and community activists. The demonstrators protested voting irregularities in Florida that permitted Bush to win the election even though he received a half-million less votes nationwide than former Vice President Al Gore.

Electoral reform is also a hot topic in Washington, D.C. Two proposals call for the federal government to provide states with funding to upgrade voting machinery.