FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tomorrow, the U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on the SAVE Act (H.R.22), a bill that has sparked widespread opposition from constituents, voting rights advocates, state election officials and members of Congress. If passed, the SAVE Act would require every single American citizen to present documentation to prove their citizenship when registering to vote or updating their voter registration, chiefly by either presenting a passport or a birth certificate in person. Experts warn that millions of Americans do not have these specific documents readily available, and would especially impact married women whose last names no longer match their birth certificate, rural and military voters, young voters, and communities of color.
Across the nation, people are rising in protest against the bill’s restrictive provisions, which threaten to disenfranchise millions of voters, particularly married women, rural voters, young voters and communities of color.
A wave of grassroots opposition
Constituents have mobilized to reject the SAVE Act. From direct confrontations with lawmakers to local activism, voters are making their voices heard:
- A married woman voter confronted Congressman McCormick, sharing her fear of being disenfranchised due to the bill’s restrictive measures.
- Petitions opposing the SAVE Act were delivered to representatives in multiple states, including Maine, Ohio, New York, and Nevada, while activists in Michigan rallied against the SAVE Act at their state capitol.
- Letters to the editor and opinion pieces denouncing the bill appeared in local outlets across the country, including the News (PA), Bangor Daily News (ME), the San Antonio Reporter, North Carolina Newsline, the News Tribune (WA), Daily Journal (San Mateo County, CA), Centre Daily (PA), and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI).
- Impacted voters Ilana Beller-Kernish of Virginia and Laura Maccleery of North Carolina shared powerful accounts at a recent press conference of how the bill would harm their access to the ballot box.
- Social media posts warning about the detrimental impacts of the SAVE Act have gone viral on TikTok and Instagram as influencers alert their followers to the impact the restrictive provisions could have on them in the next election.
(Activists Deliver Petitions Urging Rep. Kaptur to Oppose the SAVE Act)
State elected officials and election officials sound the alarm
State Election officials are raising concerns about the impact the SAVE Act would have on their voting systems and their constituents’ access to the ballot. In practice, the SAVE Act would up-end online voter registration, a practice in 42 states, make it impossible for Americans to register to vote by mail, and put an end to voter registration drives nationwide. In addition to sounding the alarm on this federal legislation, many are pushing back against similar legislation at the state level.
- Several Secretaries of State are condemning the SAVE Act, including Shenna Bellows (ME,) Jocelyn Benson (MI), and Adrian Fontes (AZ). Fontes was quoted asking “Because of [a voter’s] physical condition or their age or their distance from their county registrar’s office, they just don’t get to vote anymore? This is a radical shift in the way we consider preserving the voter’s right to vote.”
- A coalition of 17 attorneys general sent a letter to Speaker Michael Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Attorney General James condemning the legislation warning of the significant obstacles it would create for eligible voters.
- “The right to vote is the very foundation of our democracy, but with this bill, Congress is threatening that right for millions of eligible voters,” said Attorney General Tish James of New York
- State and local election officials are also speaking out, including Kristin Connelly, the elected clerk-recorder of Contra Costa County.
- State elected officials have also spoke out, including Representative Sharlett Mena in a recent op-ed condemning the bill.
From labor unions to civil rights groups, advocacy organizations from across issues are urging congress to reject this legislation
- Over 100 organizations from across issue areas, including labor unions, climate organizations, veterans organizations, good government groups, faith groups, and more, signed a letter urging Congress to reject the SAVE Act.
- Civil Rights organizations also sent a letter to Congress detailing how this legislation would upend voter registration and disenfranchise eligible voters.
- Last week, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and the Declaration for American Democracy Coalition hosted a press event with voting rights advocates and impacted voters where they collectively urged Congress to reject this legislation.
(Minister Christian Watkins declares the SAVE Act a threat to our democracy)
Across national and local publications, headlines are warning of the impact voters may face if the SAVE Act becomes law
- “What Is the SAVE Act? The Trump Admin’s Attempt to Strip Voting Rights From Women and Young People,” Teen Vogue, Celina Stewart, League of Women Voters
- “The SAVE Act’s Impact on Women Voters Isn’t a Coincidence. It’s Voter Suppression,” Ms. Magazine, Beth Lynk, When We All Vote
- “Married women could face new obstacles to vote. This is what conservatives want,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- “The Republican plan to silence millions of voters,” the Independent
Members of Congress are warning the SAVE Act could disenfranchise millions of eligible voters
- Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer declared “under my leadership, Senate Democrats will block the Republicans’ noxious, election-denying “SAVE Act”
- Representatives such as Joe Morelle, Yassamin Ansari, Terri Sewell, Maxine Dexter, Emilia Sykes, and many more have joined the outcry, highlighting the disproportionate harm to marginalized communities.
The House vote on the SAVE Act (H.R.22) is expected to take place the morning of Thursday, April 10th. The bill previously passed the U.S. House in 2024, with five Democratic Members joining the Republican Caucus to vote in favor of the legislation. If this bill passes this Congress, it will face an uphill battle in the Senate with the filibuster requiring 60 votes to advance the legislation.
MEDIA CONTACT: For media inquiries, please email christine@DFADCoalition.Org
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The Declaration for American Democracy is a diverse coalition of over 260 democracy, environmental, labor, faith-based, good government, women’s rights, civil rights, and other groups focused on advancing the structural changes necessary to ensure our democracy reflects, responds to, and represents voters.
