Overview
- The Senate, which held a procedural vote Thursday, rejected a Republican amendment to require photo ID for federal voting in a 53–47 party-line tally.
- The proposal would have limited in-person identification to a driver’s license, state ID, passport, military or qualifying tribal ID, and for mail ballots it would have required a copy of photo ID or the last four digits of a Social Security number plus an affidavit.
- Democrats argued the plan would block eligible voters and complicate mail voting, while Republicans said it was a simple safeguard that polls show many voters support.
- The broader SAVE America Act would also require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register, a change researchers say many Americans cannot meet quickly because they lack easy access to passports or birth certificates and most driver’s licenses do not prove citizenship.
- Republicans continue a floor messaging campaign as leaders acknowledge they lack the votes to beat a filibuster and discuss narrow budget reconciliation options that experts say would cover only limited pieces of the bill.