SAVE Act: the new law on voter registration in the USA — what does it mean for Americans?
12 february 2025 в 05:37
Introduced by Texas Republican Chip Roy, the Save American Voters Act (SAVE Act) could be passed and signed into law after approval by the House of Representatives and the Senate. Earlier, Republicans expressed interest in passing this law, and now, with Donald Trump in power, Americans are wondering how this law will change the voter registration process if it is signed into law.
Below you will learn more about the newly introduced SAVE Act, what it means, and how it will impact voting in the United States.
SAVE Act stands for «Securing American Voting Eligibility». According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, the law will require everyone registering to vote to provide citizenship documents. Voter registration already requires being a U.S. citizen, and in recent years, various changes have been made in America to update documentation, such as the «REAL ID».
If the SAVE Act is passed and signed into law, it will require everyone registering to vote to provide documentation of their citizenship, which is usually a birth certificate or passport. However, millions of birth certificates do not match every adult — especially women — who change their name when getting married.
According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, the law includes an «alternative process for those without citizenship documents», requiring states to establish a process «where citizens unable to provide documentary evidence can present other documents and sign a statement under penalty of perjury that the applicant is a United States citizen and eligible to vote in federal elections». While this aligns with the current voter registration process in America, the Bipartisan Policy Center added that the law comes with «additional administrative requirements for election officials».
Additionally, the SAVE Act will make changes to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA), «introducing a requirement to provide proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections», according to the Bipartisan Policy Center website.
The SAVE Act has not yet been passed by either the House of Representatives or the Senate. If both chambers pass the law, the president will then sign it into law
Below you will learn more about the newly introduced SAVE Act, what it means, and how it will impact voting in the United States.
SAVE Act stands for «Securing American Voting Eligibility». According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, the law will require everyone registering to vote to provide citizenship documents. Voter registration already requires being a U.S. citizen, and in recent years, various changes have been made in America to update documentation, such as the «REAL ID».
If the SAVE Act is passed and signed into law, it will require everyone registering to vote to provide documentation of their citizenship, which is usually a birth certificate or passport. However, millions of birth certificates do not match every adult — especially women — who change their name when getting married.
According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, the law includes an «alternative process for those without citizenship documents», requiring states to establish a process «where citizens unable to provide documentary evidence can present other documents and sign a statement under penalty of perjury that the applicant is a United States citizen and eligible to vote in federal elections». While this aligns with the current voter registration process in America, the Bipartisan Policy Center added that the law comes with «additional administrative requirements for election officials».
Additionally, the SAVE Act will make changes to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA), «introducing a requirement to provide proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections», according to the Bipartisan Policy Center website.
The SAVE Act has not yet been passed by either the House of Representatives or the Senate. If both chambers pass the law, the president will then sign it into law
© Artemenko Olga
