Last week, Republican lawmakers in both the House and Senate reignited efforts to pass the SAVE Act, unveiling two new bills that enforce strict voter registration requirements, often dubbed as the “show your papers” mandate. This initiative follows a failed attempt to pass the SAVE Act last year, which met with significant public opposition, indicating a continued push to implement policies perceived as undermining Americans’ electoral freedoms.
The SAVE Act would necessitate that American citizens present documents such as a passport or birth certificate to register to vote. However, research indicates that over 21 million Americans lack immediate access to these critical documents. Alarmingly, approximately half of U.S. citizens do not possess a passport, while many are without their birth certificate readily available. This legislation would disproportionately disenfranchise younger voters and communities of color, as well as countless women whose marital name changes are not reflected on their official documents.
The newly proposed bills would complicate election administration, placing an unfunded burden on state and local election officials. They would incur legal risks as each jurisdiction would be responsible for determining whether voters lacking the specified documentation could be deemed eligible. Election officials could face severe penalties for inadvertent errors, particularly if they registered a qualified voter without the requisite paperwork.
The current proposals have varied provisions that could hasten implementation, further complicating election processes. This rapid enactment of sweeping policy changes could create confusion among voters, ultimately leading to more citizens being disenfranchised.
Unique elements of the House and Senate versions of the SAVE Act reflect additional challenges for voters. The House’s “Make Elections Great Again Act” requires proof of citizenship and residence for voter registration, which could further obstruct access. With many Americans moving frequently, especially within states, the updated documentation may not always be current.
Moreover, the House bill enforces a strict photo ID requirement, banning student IDs and limiting accepted forms of identification, while also mandating monthly voter roll purges that could mistakenly disenfranchise voters leading up to elections. This legislation would curtail universal mail voting by requiring applications for mail ballots — a process that could make voting more cumbersome in states where mail-in voting has been a long-standing practice.
On the other hand, the Senate’s “SAVE America Act” not only imposes documentation requirements for registration but also mandates that voters show proof again when casting a ballot. States could be exempt from this second requirement only if they consistently provide their voter rolls to the Department of Homeland Security for verification purposes, a practice that has raised privacy concerns among numerous states.
Despite the alarming measures proposed by the SAVE Act, all evidence suggests that illegal voting is an exceedingly rare occurrence, challenging the premise of these new bills. The initiatives appear to be part of a broader strategy to foster distrust in electoral processes and deter American citizens from participating in democracy. As such, it is crucial for Congress to reject the SAVE Act once again, upholding the rights of all citizens to vote without unnecessary barriers.