Dear John,

Most state legislative sessions have come to a close for the year, so I wanted to take a moment to round up some of the outcomes and trends we’re seeing related to new laws about ID to vote.

But first, let me introduce myself! I’m Da Hae Kim , and I joined the VoteRiders team earlier this year as its first-ever Policy and Advocacy Manager. I’ve been working on policy and advocacy for civil rights issues for nearly 10 years, and I’m passionate about ensuring every single eligible voter can cast a ballot without unnecessary barriers getting in their way.

Advocacy and policy work is fairly new to VoteRiders, which had exclusively focused on education and direct help for voter ID issues for over a decade. Last year, the organization decided to take an even more comprehensive approach to the issue of voting rights. Now we work to stop bad policies and support good ones, while helping people navigate the existing rules and ensuring they have everything they need in order to vote with confidence.

This email will be a little bit longer than what we normally send, but I want to be sure you understand the full range of our policy work and what we’re seeing at the state and national levels.

We Helped Defeat Some Bad Bills

In four states, VoteRiders worked to stop bad bills that would have put burdensome new ID requirements on eligible voters, stopping many of them from voting. Through a combination of research, expert testimony, coalition work, and organizing, we were able to stop the following bills in their tracks:

* Senate Bill 16 in Texas (SB 16) , which would have required US citizens to provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote. VoteRiders responded in force with a coalition of Texas voting rights organizations. We provided testimony, uplifted our Texas-specific research highlighting who would be harmed, and shared stories of impacted voters we’ve helped in the past. The bill did not pass.
* House Bill 1381 in Florida (HB 1381) , which would have eliminated student IDs as an accepted ID to vote at the polls and required all Floridians to show a document such as their birth certificate or passport proving their US citizenship in order to register or re-register to vote. VoteRiders led a call to action for Floridians to fight against this harmful bill, which ultimately did not pass.
* Legislative Document 38 in Maine (LD 38), which would have required voters to present a photo ID in order to vote. VoteRiders submitted testimony against it, highlighting the harms this would cause to people over 65, young people, people with disabilities, and Black Americans.
* Senate Bill 405 in California , which would have allowed local governments to pass voter ID ordinances. Currently, California does not require voters to show IDs at their polling places, and the bill would have let local governments impose the requirement. The bill did not pass.

A Worrying Trend Toward Restricting Voting Access

We’re proud to have helped to stop those four harmful bills. However, we’re increasingly worried and vigilant about the ongoing trend toward limiting access to the ballot box. In 2025 alone, we’ve seen states like Indiana, Montana, West Virginia, and Wyoming pass not just a new or stricter voter ID law, but also laws requiring US citizens to provide documents like a birth certificate or passport to prove their US citizenship when registering to vote (also known as documentary proof of citizenship laws).

Currently, there are 38 states with a voter ID law, and since 2021, 21 states have passed a new or stricter voter ID law . Four states currently have a documentary proof of citizenship law. These numbers do not reflect those states who have attempted to pass their own version of the law, without success.

Bills We're Actively Tracking

VoteRiders is actively tracking these bills and working to provide policy advice and expertise to stop them before they can harm millions of eligible American voters:

* The SAVE Act is still being considered by the US Senate. The so-called SAVE Act is a voter suppression bill that would require all Americans to show a document such as their birth certificate or passport proving their US citizenship in order to register or re-register to vote. The House passed it, and we are continuing to monitor and fight to ensure the Senate does not pass it.
* In New Hampshire , we are working to stop HB 287, which would require absentee voters to show a photo ID when requesting their absentee ballot.
* In North Carolina , we are advocating against a bill that would ban organizations like VoteRiders from helping US citizens register to vote.
* A voter suppression bill in Ohio would change over 40 sections of Ohio’s voting and elections law, adding documentary proof of citizenship requirements to voter registration, banning secure ballot drop boxes statewide, and making it harder to run citizen-led ballot initiatives. Vote Riders has provided testimony strongly opposing the bill, and we hope the state legislature will vote to protect Ohioans’ right to vote.
* In Pennsylvania , a bill requiring photo ID to vote would disenfranchise voters. If passed, the bill would require voters to show identification at every election.

An Alarming New Tactic: Ballot Initiatives to Suppress the Vote

In states including California, Maine, Michigan, and Nevada, organizations are attempting to use ballot initiatives to confuse and ultimately impose additional bureaucratic red tape on eligible voters. VoteRiders is monitoring the progress of these ballot initiatives and is prepared to get involved to protect the right to vote:

* In California, State Assemblymember Carl DeMaio is currently organizing a ballot initiative campaign for 2026, which, if passed, would devastate California’s long-standing democratic process and upend electoral administration by imposing two extreme voter suppression measures: a documentary proof of citizenship requirement, and a brand-new ID requirement that would apply every time a voter casts a ballot.
* In Maine , after the bill requiring photo ID to vote failed, there is now an initiative on the ballot this November to impose a photo ID requirement, while also ending absentee voting as Mainers know it.
* In Michigan , there are now two pending ballot initiatives for 2026 attempting to require voters to provide documents like a birth certificate or passport to prove US citizenship when voting.
* Nevadans will vote on a ballot initiative in November 2026 on whether or not to amend the state constitution to require a photo ID when voting.

What You Can Do To Help

VoteRiders is only as strong as our thousands of volunteers, advocates, and donors! YOU make our work possible, and I hope you’ll choose to contribute to our ongoing policy efforts. Here are three things you can do right now to help:

→ Help Stop The SAVE Act! [[link removed]] Send an email to your Senators urging them to reject the dangerous SAVE Act.

→ Volunteer To Help Voters Directly! [[link removed]] Every time the voter ID laws change in a state, we need to let millions of voters know. Our volunteers reach voters directly, and in some cases work with them one one-on-one to secure the ID they need to vote.

→ Donate! Fighting these bills — especially in the form of statewide ballot initiatives — requires a lot of financial resources. Make a tax-deductible gift today and help us protect the right to vote. >> [link removed]

We’ll continue to keep you posted on new federal and state bills and laws as they come up. Thank you for taking the time to read this detailed policy brief, and thank you for protecting the right to vote!

Gratefully,

Da Hae Kim
Policy and Advocacy Manager
VoteRiders

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