The GOP-controlled House passed legislation Thursday requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote in elections, a priority for immigration hawks and President Donald Trump.
The House voted 220-208 to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act with four Democrats joining Republicans in pushing the bill through. The bill now heads to the GOP-controlled Senate where Democrats will likely resort to a filibuster to block its passage.
“Despite the ridiculous attacks and purposeful misinformation spread about the bill, I am pleased to see that the House of Representatives once again passed the SAVE Act on a bipartisan basis to ensure only U.S. citizens vote in federal elections,” said Representative Chip Roy (R., Texas), who introduced the SAVE Act and got over 100 co-sponsors on the bill.
“In order to preserve this republic, we must uphold what it means to be able to vote in a U.S. election. I am grateful that my colleagues answered the call and passed the SAVE Act, as this serves as a critical first step to ensure that we maintain election integrity throughout our country.”
Under the SAVE Act, states will be mandated to obtain proof of citizenship from individuals in person before allowing them to register to vote. It also instructs states to remove any non-citizens from voter rolls and empowers them to do so.
President Trump signed an executive order last month bolstering citizenship verification requirements and preventing foreigners from interfering in U.S. elections. The executive order will have federal agencies including the Department of Homeland Security assist states with verifying eligibility and citizenship for voter registrants.
The Trump administration said in a statement of policy Tuesday the president would sign the SAVE Act if it reaches his desk.
“Even more fundamental than enforcement of Federal law, the bill will increase the public’s confidence in the fairness of our elections and the validity of their results,” the statement reads.
The SAVE Act is strongly supported by illegal immigration restrictionists and election integrity advocates. Although non-citizen voting in federal elections is rare, some deep blue localities allow non-citizens to vote in local elections and Republicans regularly warned about the practice leading up to the 2024 election.
“Providing proof of citizenship and photo ID to vote isn’t controversial, it’s common sense. It’s absurd that we protect our beer more than we protect our ballots,” said Bryan Steil (R., Wisc.), chairman of the House Administration Committee, the congressional panel that handles election legislation.
Democratic Representatives Ed Case (Hawaii), Jared Golden (Maine), Henry Cuellar (Texas), and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Wash.) voted for the SAVE Act. The bill also passed the House on a bipartisan basis last Congress, but Senate Democrats prevented it from going anywhere.
Most House Democrats opposed the SAVE Act because they claimed it would disenfranchise voters. Numerous Democratic lawmakers falsely asserted that it would prevent married women with their husband’s last name from registering to vote. Former Secretary of State and failed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton also spread the false claim, and shared a call to action from a Soros-backed progressive activist group. The SAVE Act contains a requirement for states to ensure that married woman who take their husbands’s last name are able to register to vote.
A Gallup poll taken in October found that an overwhelming majority, 83 percent, of Americans favor proof of citizenship requirements for first-time voter registrants and 84 percent support voter ID requirements. Two thirds of Democrats support citizenship verification and voter ID, despite passionate opposition from the party’s lawmakers, activists, and media apparatus.