The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to require proof of U.S. citizenship to register an individual to vote in elections for Federal office and other purposes. Roy Chip (R. Texas) introduced it in the House of Representatives on January 30, 2026, as House Bill H.R. 7296, and is arguably designed to prohibit non-citizens from voting and prevent voter fraud in Federal Elections. The first version of this bill was halted by Senate Democrats and sent back to the House of Representatives. The House passed Bill H.R. 7296 with an amendment requiring proof of citizenship on February 11, 2026. Now designated as Senate Bill S.1383, Senate Democrats remain united in their opposition to the bill as it stands. Instead of the bill making voting easier, more convenient, and fair for eligible and registered voters, the bill will do exactly the opposite.
The pending bill, if it passes, will eliminate the option of voters to be able to register to vote by mail or online, and implement the following requirements:
Provide Documentary Proof of Citizenship
Voters will be required to provide proof of citizenship, such as a valid birth certificate or passport, just to register to vote, with a valid government driver’s license or ID required at the polls to cast a ballot. This will effectively disenfranchise millions of women who have changed their maiden name to their spouse’ last name after getting married, potentially deterring over 60 million women from even attempting to register to vote. The Brennan Center for Justice research shows that more than 21 million Americans lack ready access to their birth certificates, and nearly half of Americans not in possession of a passport.Elimination of Online and Mail-In Voting
Elderly voters living in assistive living facilities who do not have their birth certificates or passports would also struggle to comply with the Bill’s requirements. Even if successfully register to vote, these elders in our society will most likely be unable to get to polling locations to vote as most either no longer possess a valid state driver’s license or no longer have the motor skills to drive anymore. Employees at assisted living facilities cannot vouch for their client's citizenship status, so many elderly voters will also be disenfranchised.Disenfranchisement of Rural, College, and First-Time Voters
If the Bill becomes federal law, voters living in rural parts of America, college students, and first-time voters risk losing access to mail-in ballots or online voting options. Rural voters may not have vehicles to drive to polls or have means of transportation to travel to polls that may be miles away to cast a vote. Communities of color, low-income communities, students, new voters, women, and seniors in rural areas are all at risk of not being able to vote due the provisions that are part of the SAVE America Act.
A Solution to a Non-Existent Problem
In 2024, the conservative “think tank: The Heritage Foundation – often cited as the definitive source for the “facts” of Republican and conservative speaking points – Released a report they felt provided absolute proof of rampant voter fraud occurring in U.S. elections. The problem with their accounting is that the numbers, when broken down, only show 77 undocumented voters attempting to cast ballots in 24 years of federal elections…a rather small number. The bottom line? The SAVE America Act is an extreme remedy for a non-existent problem. Voter fraud does not exist on any measurable scale and is too insignificant to change the outcome of an election. To paraphrase Harmeet Dhillon U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Right, the U.S. Department of Justice audited nearly half of all U.S. voter rolls and only turned up “dozens and dozens” – not thousands and certainly not millions - of illegitimate votes. To put that into perspective, there were 50 illegitimate votes which amounted to just 0.000007% of the approximately 680 million votes cast in the last five national elections.
The Republicans have strategically and effectively turned a non-issue non-citizens voting and voter fraud into a widespread voting panic about a problem that does not exist. In recent years, the Republicans have not been able to sell their political ideology, (advocating for free-market capitalism, limited government intervention in the economy, low taxes, deregulation, border security, national defense, traditional social values, etc.) to their supporters. Thus, they have reverted to false claims of widespread non-citizen voting and voter fraud in America’s voting system. The Republicans have lost millions of their base due to the unfairness in Republican policies today, watching as their party provides tax breaks or cuts for the billionaires, eliminate access to their health care, ICE raids on communities, the killing of U.S. citizens, massive gutting of government agencies, higher grocery prices, higher home prices, higher gas prices, and higher utility bills. Since the Republican party controls all three branches of government; it squarely owns these failures. Voters know this and Republican leadership know this. The GOP is trying to use undemocratic tactics to retain power by controlling who can vote and decrease voter turnout…all in a desperate attempt to retain power.
As of August 8th, 2026, the SAVE Act remains unresolved, with the Senate failing to secure enough support before leaving Washington for its summer recess…so hope still remains. Call your representatives and make it very clear: The SAVE Act must not pass.