Dismissing the election contest relating to the office of Representative from the Sixth Congressional District of Tennessee.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent for the immediate consideration of the resolution (H. Res. 318) dismissing the election contest relating to the office of Representative from the Sixth Congressional District of Tennessee.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member for yielding.

In keeping with the tradition of the dismissal of ``Election Contest Day'' here in the U.S. House, I rise in support of House Resolution 318, a bill to dismiss an election contest filed against the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gordon) in Tennessee's sixth district.

The contestant, a candidate on the November 2002 ballot against the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Gordon), filed a notice of contest under the Federal Contested Elections Act contending that the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Gordon) is unqualified for the office because the Constitution bars an incumbent from running for reelection without first resigning his or her seat and being an inactive member of the State Bar Association. The contestant makes no allegations of irregularities, fraud, or wrongdoing in respect to the election of the sixth congressional seat.

The committee finds that challenges to the qualifications of a Member-elect to serve in the Congress fall outside the purview of the FCEA, which was designed to consider allegations relating to the actual conduct of an election. Consequently, the committee concludes that the contestant's arguments regarding the qualifications of the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Gordon) to serve in Congress do not constitute grounds sufficient to change the results of the election and, therefore, recommends that this election contest be dismissed.

Again, in the frame of the other resolution, we had full support on this and deem it to be frivolous.

Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield again briefly under his reservation, I would like to thank our ranking member, the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson), and members of the committee for their work on these two issues.

Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, I yield to the distinguished chairman, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ney), to explain the purpose of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, further reserving my right to object, I rise in support of this resolution reported unanimously by the Committee on House Administration, dismissed as a frivolous election contest against our colleague, the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Gordon). The gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Gordon) was reelected with 66 percent of the vote.

Again, I would like to commend the gentleman from Ohio (Chairman Ney) for his fair-handed and fair-minded bipartisan cooperation that has been demonstrated throughout this process.

Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H. Res. 318.