The House of Representatives passed a bill earlier this month that requires people to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections. It also requires individual states to check their voter roles for non-citizen voters.
The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE) passed the House 221-198 with 216 Republicans and five Democrats voting to pass the Act and 198 Democrats voting against it.
Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton, said, "The White House has formally announced that Biden will veto the Republican bill that seeks to prevent noncitizens from voting.
There is no hiding it now. Biden and the Democrats want illegal immigrants to vote in the election this November. Our elections are NOT safe from mass interference as long as states do not require proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections."
Why was passing this Act important? Isn’t it already against the law to vote if you are not a citizen? Yes, it is illegal to vote if not a citizen, but there are many avenues available for that to happen anyway, and then, of course, you have to be caught.
Anyone can turn in a Voter Registration Form and check the box about citizenship. And, many states issue driver’s licenses and other state ID cards to non-citizen residents and illegal aliens making it easier to register to vote.
Estimates at the end of 2023 show more than 16.8 million illegal aliens are in the United States and 12.7 million lawful permanent residents. Some of these are children, of course, but the majority are adults. Some illegal voters are registering to vote mistakenly and some on purpose. Either way, America must ensure the voter rolls only contain citizen voters.
The SAVE Act is an effort to stop illegal voter registration before it happens. It engineers out the opportunity for a non-citizen to vote before the registration occurs instead of relying on local Boards of Election to find fraudulent voters on the rolls before an election or illegal voters after they have voted.A recent Pew Research Center poll showed 81% approval for proof of ID to vote and only 18%.
Elon Musk said on X, "Anyone who opposes House Speaker Mike Johnson’s proposed SAVE ACT bill, which seeks to ensure that only American citizens can vote in federal elections, are traitors."
No system will be ever 100% perfect, but there are simple and effective ways to make it a whole lot better and quickly. Require a person who wants to register to vote to show proof of citizenship with their voter registration form AND require a photo ID at the polling station. These two basic steps cover a lot of ground in making every election more secure.
No one who wants secure American elections could have a legitimate reason to oppose these simple measures. Any vote by an illegal voter dilutes the vote of all American citizen voters.
Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (D-NY), one of the 104 Republican co-sponsors of the bill, said, “Only American citizens should vote in U.S. elections. House Republicans are leading the way in protecting America’s vote and securing our ballot boxes to ensure only Americans vote in American elections,”
When introducing the bill Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said, "I dare [Democrats] to vote no against a bill that says that only citizens—American citizens—should vote in American elections."
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) shined the light on a loophole in the National Voter Registration Act that does not require proof of citizenship during registration for federal elections. This loophole has led to instances of non-citizens being registered to vote with no repercussions. Federal law currently prohibits states from verifying citizenship status during registration for federal elections. That seems wrong too many. Shouldn’t every state be able to verify that a voter is an eligible voter?
Johnson asked, "Why are Democrats so adamantly against ensuring only American citizens vote in our elections? They want to turn illegal aliens into voters. We must pass the SAVE Act to prevent this."
New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar issued a statement expressing his “amazement” that most Democrat members of Congress are opposed to the SAVE Act. Kassar said, “The SAVE Act addresses the critical need to protect the integrity of our elections and ensure that only United States citizens are permitted to vote in federal elections.”
“The SAVE Act addresses the disturbing trend of some municipalities allowing non-citizens to vote and sends a clear notice that this will not be tolerated. This trend raises significant concerns about the sanctity of our voter rolls and the integrity of our electoral process,” Kassar added
The President, Senate, and House Democrats oppose the SAVE Act, saying this is another way to make it harder for people to vote; some Democrats are even calling it a “non-issue”.
The White House issued a statement on behalf of President Biden saying, “This bill would do nothing to safeguard our elections, but it would make it much harder for all eligible Americans to register to vote and increase the risk that eligible voters are purged from voter rolls.”
Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-VA) said on the House floor that requiring people to provide proof of citizenship to vote in US elections is "akin to a Jim Crow era poll tax".
Rep. Summer Lee (D followed suit and said that passing laws that only American citizens can vote in our elections is a "xenophobic attack".
Overwhelmingly, the majority of Americans consider election integrity as one of the major issues facing the American people. Many view the SAVE Act as a common-sense step to shore up election integrity and to ensure our elections remain free from interference and that every vote cast is legitimate and legal. President Biden has already signaled the possibility of a Presidential veto if it is sent to his desk.