Congress is moving the SAVE Act suite of bills, which would disenfranchise millions of eligible Americans from registering to vote. This time, they’ve added provisions that would also make it harder to cast one’s ballot. Here is what you need to know. 

A renewed push for the SAVE Act 

For the last several months, online supporters of the SAVE Act have partnered with President Trump, Representative Chip Roy (R-TX-21), Senator Mike Lee (R-UT), and even Elon Musk to promote the legislation through social media platforms. The focus has been on spreading mis- and disinformation about voting in our country, largely around non-citizen voting. 

Tell Your Senators to Reject the SAVE Act Suite!

Claims that non-citizens participate in federal elections are wildly overdramatized and false. In fact, it is already illegal for non-citizens to register to vote AND cast a ballot in state and federal elections across the country. In 2016, the Brennan Center for Justice found that across 42 jurisdictions with high immigrant populations, there were only 30 cases of suspected noncitizens voting out of 23.5 million votes cast (.0001%). An audit of Georgia voter rolls found that out of 8.2 million registered voters, there were only 9 instances where a noncitizen cast a ballot. Claims that noncitizen voting is a true threat capitalize on racism and fear to promote certain politicians' agendas.

President Trump has used mis- and disinformation about election security to promote a call to “nationalize elections,” taking the power to administer our country’s elections out of the hands of the thousands of local elections officials across the country. The nationalization of federal elections would be an unconstitutional power grab unlike any we have seen in our country’s history. President Trump has also called for suppressive voter ID requirements in elections and threatened to implement the policy by Executive Order, an act that, much like his previous Order on voting, would be challenged and declared unconstitutional.  

The SAVE America Act or SAVE Act 2.0 

The SAVE Act and legislation similar to it would fundamentally change how eligible Americans register to vote. 

The bill will require that every eligible voter provide documentary proof of citizenship (DPOC) to register to vote, even though voters in every state are already required to affirm or verify their citizenship status when registering and voting. Every eligible voter could be unnecessarily burdened by the SAVE Act at some point when they update or change their voter registration information. 

In February, members of the House and Senate introduced new legislation with similar provisions of the SAVE Act. The most popular bill, which was immediately passed by the  US House, is the SAVE America Act or SAVE Act 2.0. This bill still requires eligible Americans to show DPOC, and it adds two other provisions. The first is a requirement that all voters show a photo ID when they show up to the polls to vote, which would make the requirements of this bill stricter than any other voter ID law in the country, except in Ohio. The second provision requires every state to run its voter database through the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system. 

By creating a “show your papers” requirement to not only register but also to cast a ballot, lawmakers seek to suppress millions of eligible Americans from voting. Acceptable documentation requires a photo, while expressly leaving out student IDs —  even those issued by state-affiliated education institutions. Requiring a photo ID to vote would leave out millions of Americans who do not possess an acceptable photo ID, like a passport, tribal ID, military ID, or even a state-issued identification card or driver’s license.  

The League supports accurate voter rolls and secure elections. But election integrity must be pursued in ways that are transparent, lawful, and protective of constitutional and statutory rights. Further requiring states to run their databases through the DHS SAVE system (intentionally confusing, we know), a system that was never built to fulfill these requests, would disenfranchise historically marginalized communities. Naturalized citizens and immigrant communities are particularly vulnerable to database inaccuracies.  

The Make Elections Great Again (MEGA) Act 

Another piece of legislation, the Make Elections Great Again Act, would require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, mandate voter photo ID to cast a ballot, repeal universal vote by mail, direct states to conduct voter roll purges every 30 days, and more. This legislation received a hearing in the House in February, and the League submitted testimony in opposition.  

What’s next in Congress? 

The SAVE America Act and the SAVE Act have both passed the House in this Congress and could come to the Senate floor at any time.  

Any legislation that comes to the floor would be subject to the 60-vote filibuster threshold. Senators, President Trump, and members of the US House have been weighing in heavily regarding whether the Senate should require a “talking filibuster” or just vote to remove the 60-vote threshold altogether. 

A talking filibuster would require the minority to “hold the floor” to debate the bill for as long as possible and delay a vote. At any time, if a senator is not holding the floor, the opposing side could call the question to end debate with a majority vote and then move to a vote that only requires a majority to pass the legislation. Senator Collins recently came out in support of the SAVE America Act, which gives the bill the required number of fifty senators to pass the bill. A talking filibuster is rare in the Senate and could use days of floor time, preventing the Senate from getting to more pressing legislation (like funding for the Department of Homeland Security) or executive nominations.  

The League does not support the removal of the filibuster in this case. We support reform when Senate rules stand in the way of protecting voters. And we support using those same rules if they are a tool to advance legislation that strengthens our democracy. The issue is never the filibuster itself.  

The issue is always, does this help or hurt the fight for voting rights? When we ask ourselves this question about the SAVE Act and its companions, we cannot answer it in the affirmative; therefore, we do not support the removal of the filibuster to pass this legislation.  

Tell the Senate to Reject the SAVE Act 

We know that the pressure is increasing on Senators every day. Now is the time to make your voice heard. LWV opposes the SAVE Act in all its forms, and we oppose efforts to create barriers that block eligible citizens from fully participating in our democracy. Voting is the one time when all citizens have an equal say in our government.  

Please join the League in calling on your Senators to oppose this legislation in all its forms.