Congress will soon vote on the SAVE Act, which some say will make voting more difficult for non-citizens. Others are concerned it could backfire as voter suppression.
The SAVE Act aims to bring back the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, which was signed into law by President Bill Clinton. If Congress approves the SAVE Act, every American voter will be required to provide authentic citizenship documents such as a passport or birth certificate.
These documents will also need to be shown whenever a voter first registers to vote or when updates their voter registration. Current voting laws make it illegal for non-citizens to register and/or vote in federal or state elections.
Some have expressed concern for certain groups of people who might experience difficulties if the SAVE Act is passed. These groups include Americans who have changed their name, those who have moved, and those who have served in the military or live overseas. Families who have misplaced documents would need to replace them.
Laurie Wollrab, president of the League of Women Voters of McLean County, said thousands of people in McLean County would be affected.
“It’s going to require very onerous proof of citizenship for anyone who’s eligible to vote in order to be able to register to vote, and it could impact large swaths of people,” Wollrab said.
Wollrab cited married women and military families as the groups whom she believes will be impacted the most by the SAVE Act. She said people of color and Native Americans will likely experience trouble, as well.
“Right now, there is already law—current law—that makes it illegal to register to vote in a state or a federal election if you’re not a citizen,” Wollrab said. “People already have to verify and swear to the fact that they are citizens. There are so few documented cases of where this has happened in any particular election where people have erroneously registered to vote.”
Wollrab said distrust in the voting system is a polarizing issue.
“Clearly, people would feel disenfranchised,” Wollrab said. “While some people will feel more secure, other people will feel less secure.”
Wollrab said she hopes there is not any more support for policies of this nature to be put in place.
“I would like to see us target anybody who did vote for it,” Wollrab said. “Last time around, [we had to be] very specific in our targeting of those folks in asking them—and I’m assuming that some of this is actually going on behind the scenes through the League and other organizations—and pointing out the problems with this legislation.”
Wollrab said she thinks it's an effort to try and stop women and people of color from voting.
“I would call it voter suppression," she said.
