GOP lawmakers Rep. Chip Roy and Sen. Mike Lee have introduced legislation that would require voter identification to vote in federal elections, a requirement that builds on their previous legislation that called for proof of citizenship to register to vote.
The SAVE America Act would require individuals to present an eligible photo ID before voting, while also requiring proof of citizenship to be handed over in person when registering to vote and non-citizens to be removed from existing voter rolls.
The latter two requirements are carried over from their original Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act.
“The SAVE America Act makes our original SAVE Act better. President Trump rightly believes we should include Voter ID in this bill as we make a renewed push to secure our elections and protect the rights of American voters,” Mr. Roy, Texas Republican, and Mr. Lee, Utah Republican, said in a statement. “By requiring Voter ID and proof-of-citizenship, the SAVE America Act will ensure that our federal elections are decided by U.S. citizens—and U.S. citizens alone.”
In a video on social media, Mr. Lee said the voter ID requirement and name change were both suggestions of Mr. Trump.
The original SAVE Act passed the House in April, but was never taken up in the Senate.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, Florida Republican, is insisting the Senate not only vote on the SAVE Act but pass it.
“The SAVE Act on election integrity is one of the most important things to secure our elections,” she said on social media. “This is a non-negotiable.”
Ms. Luna has posted about the election integrity measure relentlessly over the past week.
She said she has enough support among fellow Republicans to effectively shut down the House floor — meaning blocking rules needed to bring most bills up for debate — until the Senate passes the SAVE Act.
She also warned that if it is not attached to an appropriations bill, it will fail as a standalone bill in the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, South Dakota Republican, has said that he supports the SAVE Act and the updated version of the measure that includes the voter ID requirement.
“At some point, we’ll have that vote,” he said, noting it is broadly supported by Republicans. “It hasn’t had consideration in the relevant committee yet, but I know there’s a high level of interest among our members in getting a vote on the SAVE Act.”
Since Mr. Thune’s remarks, Ms. Luna has been pushing for the House to attach the SAVE America Act to any must-pass spending bills it takes up because a standalone vote in the Senate would fail.
The Senate is preparing to send an amended spending package back to the House to complete most of the fiscal 2026 funding process, save for the Department of Homeland Security spending bill, which will run on a stopgap for two more weeks while negotiations continue.
Ms. Luna’s demand to attach the SAVE Act could complicate House GOP efforts to bring the package to the floor under the normal process. However, the measure can be fast-tracked under a process known as suspension of the rules if a two-thirds majority of the House supports it.
Critics of the bill argue that it is already illegal for noncitizens to register and vote in elections. The requirement of documents to prove citizenship is “unnecessary and seeks to divide us,” the League of Women Voters said.
“Americans do not need MORE obstacles to vote. The SAVE Act would create one more barrier to the voting process, as many eligible voters do not have easy access to the necessary documents,” the organization said on its website, urging people to tell their senators to oppose the bill.
