Trump-Backed SAVE America Act Could Create Voting Hurdles for Millions of Married Women
WASHINGTON — A Trump-backed legislative push to overhaul federal voter registration requirements could inadvertently disenfranchise millions of women voters, particularly those who have changed their names after marriage, according to voting rights advocates and legal experts.
The legislation, known as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, mandates that voters provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship—such as a passport or birth certificate—in person when registering to vote. While proponents argue the measure is a necessary step to ensure election integrity and prevent non-citizen voting, critics warn of significant logistical barriers for women whose current legal names do not match the names on their citizenship documents.
The “Name Mismatch” Challenge
The core of the concern lies in the discrepancy between birth certificates and current identification. According to data cited by the Center for American Progress and other advocacy groups, approximately 84% of married women in the United States change their surnames. As a result, an estimated 69 million women possess birth certificates reflecting their maiden names, while their driver’s licenses, voter registrations, and other daily identification reflect their married names.
Under the proposed strictures of the SAVE America Act, a birth certificate alone would no longer suffice as proof of citizenship for these voters because the name would not align with their current registration. To bridge this gap, affected voters would likely be required to produce additional legal documentation, such as a certified marriage license or court-ordered name change decree, to prove that the person on the birth certificate and the person registering to vote are the same individual.
“The bureaucratic hurdle here is not insignificant,” said Eliza Sweren-Becker, a senior counsel for the Brennan Center for Justice. “We are talking about requiring millions of law-abiding citizens to hunt down decades-old documents just to exercise a basic constitutional right. For many, this isn’t just an inconvenience; it is a barrier that will effectively block them from the ballot box.”
Partisan Divide and Election Security
The bill has become a flashpoint in the ongoing debate over voting rights and election security. Republican supporters, led by former President Donald Trump and House allies, argue that strict proof of citizenship is the only way to guarantee that American elections are decided solely by American citizens.
“We must have certainty in our voter rolls,” said Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), a key sponsor of the legislation. “Asking for proof of citizenship is a standard practice in many parts of the world and is a common-sense measure to protect the value of every legal vote.” Supporters maintain that the inconvenience of providing updated documentation is a small price to pay for secure elections.
However, opponents point out that non-citizen voting is already illegal and statistically negligible. They argue that the legislation solves a non-existent problem while creating a very real one: administrative chaos. Election officials have warned that verifying name-change trails for millions of voters would overwhelm local offices, potentially leading to long lines and processing delays during crucial election cycles.
Impact on Voter Registration
Beyond the specific issue of married names, the act would fundamentally alter how Americans register to vote. By requiring documentary proof of citizenship to be presented, the bill would effectively curtail popular and accessible registration methods, such as online voter registration and mail-in applications, which rely on attestation and database matching rather than physical document inspection.
For women who have been married for decades, or for those who have divorced or remarried, the paper trail required to prove their identity could be complex. In some cases, obtaining a certified copy of a marriage license from a different state or county can take weeks and incur fees, adding a “time tax” to the voting process.
As the bill moves through Congress, advocacy groups are mobilizing to inform women voters of the potential changes. “If this passes, the advice to every married woman in America is simple but urgent: Find your marriage license now,” said a representative from the League of Women Voters. “You may need it to prove you are who you say you are.”
* yahoo.com
* lwv.org
* democracydocket.com
* forbes.com
* americanprogress.org
* igcinstitute.org
* lwv.org
* 19thnews.org
* brennancenter.org
* campaignlegal.org
