A few months before the mid-term elections in the United States, Donald Trump wants to establish a law to ensure his victory. This law aims to secure elections by adding identity documents during voter registration.
The “Save America Act”, currently being debated in the American Senate, could disenfranchise millions of Americans as the mid-term elections approach in November 2026.
Donald Trump supports his proposed law with examples from his past elections. During his first election in 2017, Trump claimed that fraud was a significant issue. However, a report from the Brennan Center called “The Truth About Voter Fraud” revealed that most reported electoral fraud was due to office errors or poor data practices. The report found that only 0.0003% to 0.0025% of fraud cases were identified after closely studying the elections.
According to the White House website, the “Save America Act” requires voters to provide a document proving their American citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, to register on the electoral lists, and to bring an identity document, such as a driver’s license, when voting. Until now, the system is similar to that in France. But unlike in France, the United States does not issue a national identity card. People with a different name on their birth certificate must provide additional documents like a marriage certificate to confirm the name change.
The Brennan Center responded to this proposed law, saying, “More than 21 million American citizens of voting age do not have easy access to these documents.” For example, according to the organization, half of Americans do not have passports. Therefore, the new law would deprive millions of Americans of their right to vote.
Rick Hassen, a professor of electoral law at the University of California, Los Angeles, pointed out that the most affected individuals would be “women, transgender persons, and low-income individuals who cannot afford a passport and do not travel.”
The Brennan Center mentioned the case of married women whose new name is not on their birth certificate: they would have to obtain a marriage certificate. Latitia Harmon, research director at Florida Rising, spoke to AFP. She was married and then divorced, saying, “The problem is that I do not know which name is on the Florida electoral lists. If it does not match my driver’s license, I would have to request my divorce decree from the state of Washington. A costly and time-consuming process.”
