The SAVE Act Would Disenfranchise Millions of Eligible American Citizens
H.R. 22 · 119th Congress · Passed House 220–208 on April 10, 2025
What the SAVE Act Requires
- Documentary proof of citizenship — a passport or birth certificate — to register to vote in any federal election. Driver’s licenses, REAL IDs, military IDs, and tribal IDs do not qualify.
- In-person appearance with original documents even to update an existing registration for a change of address or party affiliation.
- Elimination of mail and online voter registration for anyone who cannot appear in person with documents. In 2022, over 18 million Americans registered by mail or online.
- Mandatory voter roll purges using faulty state databases. In Alabama, 94% of people purged as “noncitizens” were actually U.S. citizens. In North Carolina, 98%.
- No requirement to notify voters before removing them from the rolls. Citizens may not discover they’ve been purged until Election Day.
All Republicans voted yes. 4 Democrats crossed party lines.
Check Your Rep’s Vote →The Kansas Experiment: Proof It Doesn’t Work
Kansas implemented a documentary proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration in 2013. The results were damning:
The law blocked 6,000 times more eligible citizens than actual noncitizens. It was eventually struck down in court. The SAVE Act would nationalize this failed experiment.
The Autocrat’s Playbook
Anne Applebaum and other scholars of autocracy have documented a consistent pattern: aspiring autocrats don’t abolish elections — they distort them. They make it harder for opponents to vote while claiming to protect “election integrity.”
“The goal is not to win the argument. The goal is to make the argument irrelevant by ensuring your opponents cannot participate.”
The SAVE Act follows this pattern precisely: it solves a problem that does not exist (noncitizen voting at 0.002%) while creating a massive barrier for millions of real citizens. It disproportionately impacts women, the elderly, rural communities, low-income voters, and communities of color — populations that tend to oppose authoritarian consolidation.
Who Loses Their Right to Vote?
- Women who changed their name — 69 million women whose birth certificates don’t match their legal name after marriage
- Elderly citizens — born before modern birth certificate systems, or whose records were lost or destroyed
- Rural voters — who rely on mail registration and may live hours from a county office
- Military families — stationed away from home, flagged by purge algorithms as potential noncitizens
- Low-income citizens — who cannot afford the $130+ cost of a passport or the time/travel to obtain replacement documents
- Americans abroad — 9 million overseas citizens who vote by mail and cannot appear in person
Fight Back
The SAVE Act has passed the House and is now before the Senate. There is still time to stop it.
Contact Your Senators
The Senate has not yet voted. Tell your senators to vote NO on the SAVE Act. Personal calls and letters matter more than you think.
Find Your Senators →Check Your Registration
Verify your voter registration now. If your state begins purges, you need to know your status before Election Day.
Check at Vote.org →Gather Your Documents
Locate your birth certificate and passport now. If your name has changed, request an updated birth certificate from your state vital records office.
USA.gov Vital Records →Spread the Word
Most people don’t know about the SAVE Act. Share this page. Talk to your community. Silence is permission.
Sources
- · Center for American Progress: The SAVE Act Would Disenfranchise Millions
- · Brennan Center: New SAVE Act Bills Would Still Block Millions
- · Campaign Legal Center: What You Need to Know About the SAVE Act
- · Bipartisan Policy Center: Five Things to Know About the SAVE Act
- · Fair Elections Center: SAVE Act (2025)
- · Congress.gov: H.R. 22 — SAVE Act
- · House Clerk: Roll Call Vote 102
- · NPR: The House has passed the SAVE Act. Here are 8 things to know