“If your vote didn’t matter, they wouldn’t be trying so hard to take it away.”

by Lindsay Riddell

Nineteen states are suing over President Donald Trump's recent executive order on voting that he signed last week. Trump's March 25th order seeks to make dramatic changes to voting and election administration and threatens that if states do not comply they could lose federal funds and face potential action from the U.S. attorney general. Among the changes, the executive order directs the Election Assistance Commission – an independent, bipartisan body — to rewrite the federal voter registration form to include a requirement that Americans must show a copy of a proof of citizenship document to register to vote in federal races. It also aims to prevent states from counting mailed ballots that are postmarked by Election Day but arrive after the election, which 18 states currently allow. The lawsuit from the states argues that these changes cannot be ordered by a president, since it is up to states and Congress to decide how elections should be run. It also argues the president cannot direct the Election Assistance Commission to take actions since it is an independent body, and that adding a proof of citizenship requirement on the federal registration form conflicts with existing federal law.

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers are backing federal legislation that will change federal law to require proof of citizenship to register to vote. The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, or SAVE Act, would block millions of eligible voters from participating in our democracy. Like Trump's executive order, it includes citizenship documentation requirements that would exclude millions of eligible citizens from registering to vote if they don't have passports, access to their birth certificates, or if those documents do not reflect their name following a name change. This would include trans people and tens of millions who change their name upon getting married. Beyond this, it would require voter roll purges – disenfranchising eligible voters while furthering lies about voter fraud. Trump’s executive order could be blocked by the courts, but the SAVE Act is up for a vote.

The SAVE Act isn't about safeguarding elections. It's about silencing voters. Tell Congress to vote no on this dangerous bill and protect our voting rights.