Why Democrats are fighting the SAVE Act

Voting rights are again on the MAGA chopping block

One would think that voter suppression would be a thing of the past, given how much my generation and others have been taught about the evils of poll taxes, grandfather clauses, and literacy tests in our schooling.

Whenever I consider this history, my mind returns to a scene from the introduction to Robert Caro’s Master of the Senate, as he notes the trials faced by Black Americans to register to vote in Alabama in 1957:

“The Barbour County registrars used a less sophisticated technique. They asked more reasonable questions—the names of local, state, and national officials—but if an applicant missed even one question, he would not be given the application that had to be filled out before he could receive a certificate, and somehow, even if a black applicant felt sure he had answered every question correctly, often the registrars would say there was one he had missed, although they would refuse to tell him which it was.”

When those in power restrict the voting rights of a particular group, it is out of fear: fear that accountability to the preferences of that group might lead to political defeat. Rather than question the merits or popularity of their policies, the offending politico would rather relegate the source of that opinion to second-class status where it matters most, at the ballot box.

Ah, but today’s deniers of civil liberties are more cunning than in 1957, knowing that such a brash appeal to prejudice won’t sell as well today. Instead, they wax about matters of ‘integrity’ and ‘security,’ reinforced by unfounded claims and conspiracy theories about voter fraud.

Last year, the Michigan Department of State completed a review of noncitizen voting in the 2024 general election and found that only “15 credible cases [were] identified – 0.00028% of more than 5.7 million total ballots cast…¹” These findings have been supported by investigations in states as varied as Iowa, Louisiana, and Utah². On the opposing side, there is no evidence, so on the basis of known facts, one must conclude that voter fraud is not a major issue in this country.

The Republicans’ newest solution in search of a problem is the SAVE Act, which would require citizens to provide extensive proof of citizenship documentation in order to register to vote. (It should be noted that defrauding the government when registering or voting as a noncitizen is already illegal.)

On its face, this may seem reasonable; surely every citizen has some form of identification. But as noted by an excellent policy brief by Vote.org³, the effects of the SAVE Act in practice would be catastrophic:

• “A standard driver's license alone does not qualify in most states.” Less common IDs, such as passports or birth certificates, will be needed.

• Online and mail-based voter registration would likely end.

• “About 24% of Americans under 30 do not have ready access to qualifying documents.”

• “Research from the Brennan Center for Justice found that over 21 million Americans lack ready access to documentary proof of citizenship.”

• “In the 30 largest counties by area in the Western United States, voters would need to drive an average of 260 miles to reach an election office.”

In short, young, poor, and female voters will especially suffer, and people of color will be among the worst impacted.

Imagine you are a recently married woman who has changed their last name, and therefore you have a legal name that is different from their birth certificate and current passport. In 45 states, you will need to secure new ones to re-register to vote, now in-person, a challenging process to say the least.

Imagine again you are an elderly man in a small town in Montana, and you don’t drive anymore. How will you be able to update your expiring registration when the nearest election office is 4 hours away?

These impacts aren’t hypothetical. According to that same policy brief:

“Kansas implemented a state-level proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration. Before the law, noncitizen voter registration in Kansas was approximately 0.002% of all registered voters. After the law took effect, it blocked roughly 31,000 eligible U.S. citizens, representing 12% of all applicants, from registering. It prevented far more American citizens from registering than noncitizens and was eventually struck down in federal court. Arizona implemented a similar requirement with a comparable outcome.”

The crux of the issue is this: voters who have struggled to gain representation and exercise their voting rights are now being targeted to depress their turnout. Not coincidentally, these voters tend to support Democrats in higher numbers. It turns out the only people this Act intends to save are unpopular Republican members of Congress.

In addition, according to leading constitutional scholars such as Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law, the SAVE Act is likely unconstitutional. This is because it imposes an implicit tax on voting by requiring to obtain additional voter identification, such as passports⁴. The Act also imposes a greater burden on voters than generally allowed under the Equal Protection Clause.

Here’s the good news: While the SAVE Act passed the House against strong Democratic opposition, it is stalled in the Senate by a Democratic filibuster⁵. Democrats are taking a stand for the voting rights of all Americans, including those who may oppose their policies, as Republicans champion the opposite course.

Try as Trump may, as long as the filibuster remains, the SAVE Act will be frozen still, and for that we can thank Democrats.

What do you guys think about this situation? Let us know in the comments!

1. https://www.michigan.gov/sos/resources/news/2025/04/03/michigan-department-of-state-review-confirms-instances-of-noncitizen-voting-are-extremely-rare

2. https://time.com/7381495/trump-non-citizen-voter-fraud-claims-research-immigration/

3. https://www.vote.org/save-act/

4. https://www.scotusblog.com/2026/03/the-supreme-court-and-voting-identification/

5. https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5796203-donald-trump-save-america-act-shutdown/