The SAVE America Act could complicate voting for millions of married women and transgender Americans by requiring citizenship proof and ID that many lack
WASHINGTON: Millions of married women and transgender Americans could face significant new barriers to voting if a bill promoted by President Donald Trump becomes law.
The proposed Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act would require proof of citizenship to register and specific identification to cast a ballot in federal elections.
This poses a particular challenge for women who changed their names after marriage.
Their current identification often does not match their birth certificate, necessitating additional documentation to justify the discrepancy.
Transgender voters face similar hurdles, as their official documents may not consistently reflect their current identity.
According to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, more than 21 million Americans lack ready access to the required documents.
Roughly half of Americans do not even possess a passport. Election law expert Rick Hasen from UCLA stated that women and transgender people are most likely to be affected, alongside low-income and working-class Americans.
The White House argues the act is necessary to combat voter fraud and prevent non-citizens from voting, which is already illegal.
Regarding married women, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said they must simply update their documentation through state processes.
Letitia Harmon, policy director at Florida Rising, highlighted the practical difficulties. Having changed her name twice due to marriage and divorce, she does not know which name is in official databases.
Harmon said she would likely need to order costly proof of divorce from Washington state.
She previously could not vote in a 2014 Kansas primary because officials demanded her birth certificate, not just a photo ID.
A federal judge later declared that Kansas law unconstitutional after it blocked over 30,000 registrations. Harmon called it senseless to disenfranchise thousands to find a handful of fraud cases.
Indeed, proven voter fraud remains extremely rare. A Washington Post investigation found just 31 credible incidents out of one billion ballots cast from 2010 to 2014.
In 2025, only two people in Florida were charged with lying about citizenship to vote. The political implications are significant, as men historically skew more Republican than women.
According to Pew Research, 52% of men identified with or leaned toward the Republican Party in 2024, compared to 44% of women. The Republican-led House has passed its version of the SAVE Act.
It now faces steep Democratic opposition in the Senate. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has already signed a state version, which will take effect in January 2027.
