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By Andrew Stanton
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The SAVE Act, which House Republicans could bring to a vote as early as this week, could make it more difficult for Americans living in rural areas, a cornerstone of the party's coalition, to vote, experts said.
Why It Matters
The SAVE ACT, which stands for the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, would impose new federal requirements for proving citizenship when registering to vote.
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Republicans have long sought stricter voter registration guidelines, saying that it would prevent voter fraud. Critics have pushed back on these proposals, saying that there is little evidence of widespread voter fraud and new measures would make it more difficult for some Americans to vote.
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What To Know
One aspect of the bill requires many voters to show proof of their citizenship in-person, which experts told Newsweek could make voting more difficult for the millions of Americans living in rural areas, as they may have to travel long distances to register.
That, however, is only one group that stands to be affected by the bill, which could create barriers for many Americans, particularly those who are lower income, experts said.
The bill states that any applicant who submits the mail voter registration form will not be registered to vote in an election for federal office unless they present "documentary proof of United States citizenship in person to the office of the appropriate election official not later than the deadline provided by State law for the receipt of a completed voter registration application for the election" or provide that proof to an election official the day of the election, if their state allows same-day registration.
Critics say that this specific language would make it more difficult for those living in rural states to vote, as they may have to travel further than those in urban or suburban areas to reach an election office.
Rural voters are among the more conservative demographics in the U.S. In the 2024 presidential race, 64 percent of rural voters backed Pesident Donald Trump, compared to 51 percent of suburban and 38 percent of urban voters, according to CNN exit poll data.
Most of the more rural states skewed Republican as well.
Vermont and Maine, the two most rural states, backed Vice President Kamala Harris, but the other 8 states the U.S. Census Bureau says has more than 40 percent of its population living in rural areas handily backed Trump.
Costas Panagopoulos, professor of political science at Northeastern University, told Newsweek on Wednesday the requirement would "make it more difficult for anyone who has to incur greater costs to register to vote."
"That could include not only the distance they would need to travel to locations where they can do that, but also disproportionately affect lower-income voters who may not be able to take time away from their work commitments in order to do so," he said.
Still, he said the impact on rural Republican voters would not be disproportionate to Democrats, as some of their voting groups such as low-income voters and people of color may also face new barriers if this becomes law. Socioeconomic factors, rather than geographic factors, will be the key question in how this bill would impact Americans, he said.
Older voters, who may face physical challenges in traveling to election offices, and college-aged voters who are not familiar with the voter registration process may also be heavily affected by the bill, he said.
"Anything that makes it harder to register to vote will disproportionately those individuals who are lower income," he said.
Chandler James, a professor of political science at the University of Oregon, told Newsweek that it will make registering more difficult for rural voters, some of whom live hours from towns or popular centers, but the partisan effects of the bill are a bit difficult to measure.
While geography is a factor in how easy it is for voters to show these documents in person, economic status is another key determinant. The poorest Americans, regardless of where they live or which party they lean toward, are generally the least likely to have an ID and therefore face the most new barriers under this bill, he said.
They're also the least likely to have jobs that allow them to easily take time off to register, he said.
Some studies suggest these sorts of policies have little effect on turnout, as the vast majority of Americans already have IDs. But it is particularly difficult to assess the effects, as Americans who don't have IDs are unlikely to participate in public polling, he said.
"Even though the effects may be small in terms of who is effected by this, or who ends up not voting because of this, I think it's, nonetheless, wrong approach. The goal should be to get more people to vote," he said. "More legal voters, so that they can express their preferences and have their voices heard."
Republicans have dismissed concerns that the bill will make it harder for rural voters to register.
"Imagine thinking rural Americans or people of color aren't capable of getting an ID. That's the insulting, condescending argument Democrats like Rep. Julie Johnson are using to oppose voter ID laws," Representative Mary Miller, an Illinois Republican, said on X in response to a critique of the bill from the Texas Democrat.
Critics have also raised questions about whether the SAVE Act will make it more difficult for married women, whose married names may not match that on their birth certificate, to vote.
What People Are Saying
Darrell West of the Brookings Institution told Newsweek: "The new registration requirements may make it more difficult for rural voters to cast their ballots. People there may not have all the documents that are required or have easy access to county courthouses. The legislation puts obstacles in the way of voting, which may have the affect of depressing turnout."
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson during a press conference on Tuesday: "Polling shows that nearly 90 percent of the American people believe that proof of citizenship should be required to vote. There are few issues in American politics that enjoy that level of bipartisan support. This should pass with a massive bipartisan margin. But watch, it won't. The Democrats are contorting themselves into a pretzel trying to justify some sort of vote against this. Last year, they argued we were too close to a federal election to make voting changes. And then they said that non-citizens don't actually vote, and then they said the SAVE Act will somehow result in voter suppression. All that was total nonsense."
When reached by Newsweek, a Johnson spokesperson pointed to his previous remarks.
Greta Bedekovics and Sydney Bryant of the Center for American Progress in a February 28 analysis: "The SAVE Act would particularly harm rural voters because millions of them rely on remote voter registration methods—online voter registration and mail-in voter registration—to securely and easily register to vote. States have invested decades of technological development and resources to ensure that voter registration is accessible to all Americans, but the SAVE Act would rip away these services."
Republican Representative Chip Roy previously told Newsweek: "This bill isn't being attacked because it'll exclude citizens from voting—it won't. It's being attacked because the policy is wildly popular with the American people, its opponents want and need illegals to vote, and they'll use anything they can to attack it."
What Happens Next
The bill may face a House vote this week. If it passes, it will then head to the Senate, where it could struggle to overcome the 60-vote filibuster. Democrats have been generally opposed to the legislation, and it would need support from seven of them in the Senate to pass.
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