After nearly a year of revisions, debate and protests, the Save American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act failed in the Senate this April. Sponsored by Republican Senator Mike Lee, several of his fellow congressmen and over 100 co-sponsors, the SAVE Act has remained at the forefront of the Republican legislative agenda for the past year. Earlier last year, President Donald Trump called upon his party to draft a bill aimed at standardizing the voting system by changing voter regulations across the country.
The act sought to implement these “reforms” by requiring every voter to present a valid ID and proof of citizenship, largely to prevent undocumented immigrants from influencing elections. Although the bill was promoted by the GOP as a measure to eliminate voter fraud, Democratic opponents were quick to point out what they viewed as inherent flaws in its design. Specifically, they argued that voter fraud among undocumented immigrants is not a significant factor in election outcomes and that the legislation represented government overreach impacting millions of Americans.
Regarding undocumented immigrants voting, right-wing news outlets have continuously claimed that thousands of undocumented immigrants are swaying presidential elections. However, even high-end estimates from conservative sources suggest that if 2,500 undocumented immigrants were to vote, it would account for less than .002% of the popular vote.
Another reason Democratic congressmen opposed the SAVE Act was expressed by Loyola photography teacher Chris Howard: “I think that it is unfair that the Republican Party’s actions can block part of the vote from Democrats by disenfranchising minority Americans from voting.”
The most commonly shared view among Republican politicians is that the bill would protect American citizens by ensuring an unadulterated voting experience. Meanwhile, Democrats in both the House and Senate speculated that the underlying goal of the GOP was to reduce Democratic influence in elections.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer emphasized that the bill would require millions of disabled, elderly and minority voters to locate documents they may not have accessed in years. Democrats argue that these voting groups largely align with the Democratic Party and that stricter requirements could ultimately reduce voter turnout among those populations.
However, the bill also stalled because of opposition from a small number of Republican senators. Their primary concern was that the legislation could unintentionally create obstacles for Americans serving in the military, as well as complicate voting access for other eligible citizens.
In the future, the SAVE Act is likely to return to the Senate floor in some form. However, key portions of the bill may instead be integrated into smaller resolutions or future legislation more likely to pass. This would allow Republicans to preserve portions of the proposal while setting aside the more controversial sections of the act.
