John,

This week, Donald Trump called for Republicans to “nationalize” our elections, which is clearly illegal as elections are managed by states under our Constitution.¹ But congressional Republicans appear more than happy to comply with his anti-democracy demands.

Right-wing extremists in Congress are once again pushing for the misnamed Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE) Act―a piece of anti-democratic legislation that would upend voter registration drives and online voter registration and disenfranchise millions of eligible voters.²

The SAVE Act would require citizens to show a passport or birth certificate that matches their current name, just to register to vote or update their voter registration. These are documents that 21 million Americans lack easy access to, and almost half of all Americans lack a passport.^{3, 4}

This would disproportionately burden women who changed their name, usually when they marry, so that their birth certificate will not satisfy the bill’s proof requirements―that’s an estimated 69 million women.⁵ Others who will find it hard to comply are senior voters who don’t have easy access to such documents, rural voters, people with low incomes, and naturalized citizens who could be wrongly removed from voter rolls due to outdated or mismatched data.

If a birth certificate is not available or does not show a person’s current name, a passport is the only alternative. But that takes weeks to get and costs money―$165 plus shipping for a first-time applicant. The more limited passport card costs $30. The SAVE Act is really just a revival of the unconstitutional poll tax.

Now, Donald Trump and Republicans want to add showing a photo ID as well. All of this is being done in the name of “protecting” our election process from non-citizens voting. But non-citizen voting is astonishingly rare and already illegal. The SAVE Act is a solution looking for a problem that doesn’t exist.

If we really want to protect American democracy, we should ensure that every eligible voter has equal access to the ballot box. We should be expanding access, not restricting it.

Send a message to Congress today and tell them to reject the anti-voter SAVE Act.

Voter registration forms already require people to attest to their citizenship status, and there are serious consequences―including fines, jail, and deportation―for those who lie. Requirements like the ones proposed in the SAVE Act disproportionately affect women who have changed their name due to marriage, people of color, people with low incomes, people in rural communities, seniors, and naturalized citizens who may be wrongly removed from voter rolls due to outdated or incorrect data.⁶

This legislation is being pushed at a time when Donald Trump is doing everything in his power to sow doubt over the integrity of the U.S. election process due to his continued debunked claims that the 2020 presidential election was “stolen” from him. From demanding states hand over sensitive voter information―and suing states that do not comply―to raiding a voting center in Georgia, Trump is doing everything in his power to try to intimidate election officials and bend them to his will.^{7, 8}

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi went so far as to suggest that if Minnesota was to just hand over its voter rolls to the administration, federal immigration agents might leave.⁹

We can’t hand control of our elections over to an administration that is intent on silencing dissent―and suppressing the vote.

Send a message to Congress today and demand they protect American voters, not disenfranchise them, and reject the SAVE Act.

Thank you for all you do,

Dominique Espinoza
Policy and Strategic Partnerships Manager, CHN Action

¹ Trump says Republicans should ‘nationalize’ elections
² A Republican-backed bill would upend voter registration. Here are 8 things to know
³ Millions of Americans Don’t Have Documents Proving Their Citizenship Readily Available
⁴ Americans want to see the world, but only 51% took this important step to do it
⁵The SAVE Act: Overview and Facts
⁶ An effort to block non-citizens from voting could impact married women, too
⁷ Trump's 2020 grievances fuel election power grabs
⁸ FBI raids Georgia elections office as Trump administration seeks voter data from states
⁹ Bondi’s injection of voter roll demands into Minneapolis ICE tensions draws claims of ‘ransom’