Could the SAVE Act Require Passports or REAL IDs for Voting? Here's What You Need to Know.

(NEXSTAR) – The Senate is poised to deliberate on the SAVE Act, a proposal that could introduce stringent ID requirements for voters and possibly necessitate additional documents, such as passports, for casting ballots.

Officially named the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, or SAVE Act, this bill mandates that Americans must verify citizenship during voter registration and present valid photo identification at the polls. While some states already enforce such measures, this act aims to standardize the requirement nationwide.

Key Aspects of Trump’s SAVE America Act

Although federal law stipulates that voters in national elections must be U.S. citizens, it does not currently demand documentary evidence to substantiate this.

You may already be in compliance

After passing in the House this February, the bill now encounters significant resistance in the Senate, where Democrats stand united against it. Advocates, including former President Trump, argue that the legislation is essential for combating voter fraud. However, Democrats caution that it may disenfranchise millions by imposing barriers to voting.

To cast a ballot at the polls, you would need to show a valid photo ID.

Thirty-eight states already require some form of ID at the polls, a Nexstar analysis found. In most cases, it’s a photo ID that is required. If a voter arrives at the polls without an ID, they may still be able to cast a provisional ballot, depending on local legislation.

Only 12 states and the District of Columbia will, with few exceptions, let you vote at the polls without any documentation, under certain circumstances. Should the SAVE Act become law, voters in these states would be impacted, as well as those who vote by mail.

As The Hill previously reported, the SAVE Act lists valid state-issued driver’s licenses, U.S. passports, military IDs, and tribal IDs with a photo and expiration date as acceptable forms of identification.

What about proving citizenship?

It’s this requirement that may be more cumbersome, regardless of whether you are or are not a citizen.

Under the SAVE Act, you would need proof of citizenship to register to vote. This could be as simple as providing your valid passport or a birth certificate – the latter would also require a photo ID, and potentially another document, if you’ve changed your name since birth.

In addition to a non-expired U.S. passport, the text of the bill lists multiple acceptable forms of photo IDs to prove citizenship. Some would need to be paired with a photo ID:

A REAL ID-compliant driver’s license or state ID card (as long as your state already requires proof of citizenship to issue a REAL ID)
A U.S. military ID card with a U.S. military record of service showing your U.S. place of birth
A photo ID from a federal, state, or tribal government that shows your U.S. place of birth
Other photo IDs from a federal, state, or tribal government not mentioned above, paired with a birth certificate, “an extract from a United States hospital Record of Birth” created when you were born, an adoption decree showing you were born in the U.S., a Consular Report if you were born abroad, a Report of Birth from the Secretary of State, a Naturalization Certificate, a Certificate of Citizenship, or an American Indian Card from the Department of Homeland Security with the “KIC” classifcation.

You may have to complete the registering or re-registering process in person rather than online or via mail, the Legal Defense Fund noted.

Why your driver’s license may not be enough to prove citizenship

While your REAL ID would count as a photo ID when voting, in only a few states would it be considered proof of citizenship. Only five states — Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont and Washington — offer the type of enhanced REAL IDs that explicitly indicate U.S. citizenship.

Outside of those states, you would need another document to prove you were born in the U.S.

While you do not, at present, have to prove your citizenship when registering to vote, you do have to attest under penalty of perjury that you are a citizen of the U.S.

Changes could come fast if SAVE Act passes

If the SAVE America Act were enacted, the new rules for voter registration and voter identification at the polls would take effect immediately. Trump says it’s necessary for Republicans to win in the midterm elections — even though they won both chambers of Congress and the White House without the law in 2024.

With primary elections getting underway next month, critics say it would be difficult and costly for state election officials to implement, and could confuse voters.

Marc Elias, a Democratic elections attorney, said he isn’t ”aware of any state that currently requires what this would require.”

“If it’s passed tomorrow, the day after, states would need to implement this,” Elias said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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