Senate Democrats oppose SAVE America Act ahead of Republican vote

As Senate Republicans prepare to vote on the SAVE America Act this week, Democrats remain opposed to the voter-ID legislation strongly backed by President Donald Trump.

While House Republicans in February passed one version of the bill, mostly along party lines, they still need 60 votes in the Senate to bypass the filibuster. With only a 53-47 majority, Senate Republicans can’t advance the legislation without upper chamber Democratic support, unless lawmakers change the filibuster rule.

Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., on Thursday said he would bring the legislation to the floor for a vote this week to “put Democrats on the record.”

With multiple versions of the legislation circulating, it’s unclear which one Thune may bring to the Senate floor for a vote next week.

“We don’t yet know what Thune is doing … but we’re prepared for every possible scenario,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York told reporters Sunday afternoon during a press call.

“My caucus really feels strongly that this would be a horror … one of the worst things that’s happened in the history of this country in terms of allowing people to vote,” he said. 

The recent House-passed bill would require Americans to show proof of citizenship, such as a certified birth certificate or passport, to register to vote for federal elections. The bill would also mandate photo identification rules to cast a ballot in person or by mail.

If enacted, the legislation could cause a “large scale voter suppression” for those unable to comply, according to Marc Elias, founder of voter rights organization Democracy Docket, who also spoke to reporters during the Sunday call.

“Most people don’t have a passport, and frankly, most people don’t have ready access to an original or a certified copy of a birth certificate,” he said.

Some 21 million Americans don’t have easily accessibly documents to prove their citizenship, and 2.6 million Americans lack government-issued photo ID, according to the Brennan Center for Justice and the University of Maryland’s Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement.

During fiscal year 2025, the U.S. Department of the State issued roughly 27.3 million passports, which included about 4.5 million passport cards, according to the latest data.

The bill passed in February would also require each state to regularly send a list of eligible voters to the Department of Homeland Security to identify non-citizens and remove them from the voter rolls.

“It’s just appalling what they’re trying to do here, and it has my caucus really, really motivated to do everything we can to stop it,” Schumer said during the call on Sunday. “It’s just a cynical attempt by Donald Trump to steal the election.”

CNBC reached out to the White House for comment in response to Schumer and voter rights activists’ legislation critiques.

Next week’s expected SAVE America Act vote comes less than eight months before the November midterm elections, which could threaten Republican control of the Senate and House of Representatives.

In recent months, Trump has become increasingly focused on the elections, saying that Republicans should “nationalize” elections, and that he could impose voter-ID requirements by executive order. Trump has also expressed urgency in enacting the SAVE America Act.

“It must be done immediately. It supersedes everything else. MUST GO TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE,” he said in a Truth Social post last week. “I, as President, will not sign other Bills until this is passed.”

— CNBC’s Justin Papp contributed reporting to this story