The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act’s underlying purpose isn’t about election security; it’s about voter suppression. By requiring voters to provide proof of citizenship through documents, like a passport or birth certificate, this bill will disqualify millions of legal voters. Affected citizens could include married women who have changed their last names, low-income Americans without access to official paperwork and transgender people whose IDs don’t match their birth certificates. If passed, the bill won’t stop fraud; it will stop democracy.
Throughout all of American history, women have struggled to gain their voice and rights in politics. Even after the passing of the 19th Amendment in 1920, the guaranteed rights only extended to white women, leaving the many voices of women of color silenced. Now, over a century later, new laws, such as the SAVE Act, are working to reverse the hard work and progress that women have fought so hard to secure.
“I feel that I am living in a simulation,” Geanie Rizzo, a nearly three-decade resident of Hunterdon County, said. “I am watching rights that were granted to me when I was a little girl being slowly stripped away from me. At 10 years old, I had more rights than I do now. In high school, the Equal Rights Amendment was written, and when Biden stated on his last day that he was putting it into law, I cried. I knew that it would not last, but we, as women, have lost our body autonomy, and now they are going after our right to vote.”
However, it’s not only women who are being targeted, but also immigrants and transgender individuals. Immigrants have long faced barriers to participate in American democracy, even when they were given the right by the 15th Amendment. States who opposed the ratification did anything in their power to stop these people from voting, using measures such as poll taxes and literacy tests. History is repeating itself through new voter ID laws, which will disproportionately affect naturalized citizens. Similarly, transgender individuals have battled for decades to have their identities legally recognized, yet they continue to face difficulties to obtain matching documentation.
The SAVE Act exploits the vulnerabilities of these marginalized groups in order to silence their voices.
“To be fully represented is to have legislation that is well researched, supports my best interests and allows me to vote easily, without the risk of harassment,” Del Val senior Kacey Burd said.
Obtaining official documents, such as a passport, is costly and difficult for many Americans. Currently, the cost of a passport for adults 16 or older is $165, which is a significant financial burden to low-income families. Only an estimated 45-50% of Americans own a valid passport, indicating the possibility that over half of the population could face obstacles under the SAVE Act.
As access to voting becomes more restricted, the intentions of the SAVE Act become clear: democracy is to be an exclusive club in which the voices of the poor, minorities, immigrants and women—”opposition voters” to the Trump administration—are to be systematically erased. In place of its democracy, the U.S. descends towards a plutocracy, a system in which power is held by the wealthy in order to serve their best interests.
“This bill is being used to silence transgender people, women and low-income individuals,” Rizzo said. “Requiring proof of a birth certificate is difficult for many people, and most married women’s IDs will not match. They [the Trump administration] are trying to get people not to vote.”
The SAVE Act is one of the many ways the Trump administration is attempting to strip basic rights from vulnerable communities. From restrictions on reproductive healthcare to the transgender military ban to attacks on LGBTQIA+ protections in schools, there has been a clear regression to our society in the name of “tradition” and “security.”
“Just do your research and know what’s going on,” Burd said. “I would say there are a lot of people who aren’t even aware that the SAVE Act is a thing. Aside from being aware, support legislation that makes voting access more open to everyone.”
