Months ago, bills were introduced in both houses of Congress to tell the states when to hold presidential primaries, but both bills have been dormant. However, on September 6, Congressman Sandor Levin (D-Michigan) held a press conference in Washington, D.C., to draw attention to his bill, HR 1523. A somewhat similar bill in the Senate, S 1905, is sponsored by Senators AMy Klobuchar, Lamar Alexander and Joe Lieberman.
HR 1523, as currently worded, applies to all political parties. However, S 1905 only applies to parties that won any electoral votes in the last presidential election. Both bills divide the U.S. into regions, and provide for a random method of determining which regions would hold primaries on which dates. The House bill does not give special treatment to any state, but the Senate bill lets Iowa and New Hampshire go first, in perpetuity.
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S1905 would seem sure to draw a constitutional challenge from any of 48 attorneys-general.
HR1523 looks like a vehicle for pork. Pay the states to conduct those primaries, then regulate and nationalize the entire election process. Smells like a desperate power grab to me.
OTOH, the states can negotiate a compact among themselves which will preserve their autonomy. This approach could lead to greater uniformity in state election processes blocking any justification for a fed takeover. They could have started this after 2000.