House Republicans on Thursday passed legislation that would require people to provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote, a measure designed to halt illegal immigrants from participating in federal elections.
The House GOP also passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility or SAVE Act last year, but the measure was ignored by the Democrat-led Senate. Despite the new GOP majority in the Senate, the bill will still have a steep climb to get the 60 votes needed to survive in the upper chamber.
The bill was originally introduced ahead of the 2024 election cycle and keyed in on two top priorities for the GOP and President Trump: illegal immigration and election integrity.
It was also meant to serve as a rebuke of Democrats, who Republicans accused of pushing non-citizens to participate in elections.
The legislation from Rep. Chip Roy, Texas Republican, would amend the National Voter Registration Act to require people to register in person with documents that prove they are citizens such as a Real ID, passport or other identification that shows their place of birth.
The law currently does not require proof of citizenship but does ask registrants to attest that they are citizens or face penalties.
Mr. Roy’s legislation again easily passed the House in a 220 to 208 vote, with four Democrats — Reps. Jared Golden of Maine, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Ed Case of Hawaii and Henry Cuellar of Texas — breaking with their party to support it.
