Passage of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act would stand as the Trump administration’s most consequential domestic policy achievement of 2026. The measure would require prospective voters to prove U.S. citizenship at the time of registration and to present photo identification to cast a ballot.
The case for this legislation is not abstract. Polls consistently show that more than one-third of Americans view former President Joe Biden’s 2020 victory as illegitimate, and just 62% believe it was fair — clear evidence of deep and lingering distrust in the nation’s electoral system. The SAVE Act is a necessary step toward restoring confidence in the integrity of our elections.
With more than 80% of Americans backing the legislation, opposition from any member of Congress — elected to represent their constituents — is difficult to justify.
The bill has cleared the House but remains stalled in the Senate, where it falls short of the 60 votes required to invoke cloture and end debate under current filibuster rules.
Republicans face two procedural paths. They could eliminate the legislative filibuster outright — a move some in the conference resist, wary of the precedent it would set when Democrats next control the chamber.
Alternatively, they could force a return to the “talking filibuster,” requiring opponents to hold the floor and sustain debate physically. Once the debate collapses, the measure could advance to a final vote and pass with a simple majority.
Sen. Susan Collins’s (R-ME) announcement of support last Friday provided the crucial 50th Republican vote needed to advance the measure. With Vice President JD Vance empowered to cast the tiebreaking vote, the GOP would have the 51 votes necessary for passage.
It’s clear to see why, with the possible exception of Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), no Democratic senators support the SAVE Act. It would make it harder to cheat in elections.
Far more difficult to grasp, however, is the hesitation — and in some cases outright refusal — of certain Republican senators to pull out all the stops to see this important legislation across the finish line.
Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), chairman of the Senate rules committee, refuses to schedule a floor vote, preventing the bill from advancing.
In an April 2025 Wall Street Journal op-ed, McConnell argued that if President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14248 were codified into law, it could pave the way for a future Democratic president and Congress to impose “sweeping mandates to carry out a complete federal takeover of American elections.”
Few, however, are buying his stated objections to the SAVE Act. In a video released Friday, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) cited McConnell’s well-known animosity toward Trump — his “meanness.” He further suggested that, due to the senator’s declining cognizance, he has become increasingly reliant on his staff, whom Burchett claims are running the show. He emphasized the staffer’s coziness with lobbyists.
The Federalist’s Sean Davis agrees that McConnell’s aides and “apparatchiks” are in charge, and they’re “ghost-writing the op-eds and talking points.”
In a weekend post on X, Davis argued that McConnell’s opposition to the SAVE Act is “about money and power.” He noted, “Trump blew up the system, and especially the foreign policy, that allowed McConnell and his idiot staffers and all their lobbyist friends to get rich. They have to get rid of Trump, and [Make America Great Again], because Trump and MAGA are a fatal threat to their grift.”
There was a time early in his Senate career when McConnell championed election-integrity reforms. Podcaster Kevin DeAnna recently posted a 1987 clip of McConnell speaking on the Senate floor about election stealing “at all levels of government.” DeAnna concluded, “There’s no real reason why he’d oppose it now other than spite.”
If McConnell’s resistance is disappointing, Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s indecision is far more consequential. While he is among the 50 Republicans who say they support the SAVE Act, he has conspicuously declined to commit to a talking filibuster to pass it. His support is meaningless if it is not backed by action.
Thune’s hesitation has become a source of mounting frustration for conservatives who believe this moment demands resolve, not caution. The SAVE Act is not some fringe or experimental proposal. It enjoys overwhelming public support. If legislation with this level of backing does not merit a procedural fight, what does?
MAGA RIGHT SOURS ON THUNE OVER SAVE ACT FIGHT
The political reality is unforgiving. Republicans currently control both chambers of Congress — but that control is anything but permanent. The House majority is narrow. The Senate map is unpredictable. Waiting for a more convenient moment is not a strategy; it is surrender by delay. Opportunities like this do not linger.
The question is no longer whether the SAVE Act can pass. It is whether Thune is willing to fight for it — or whether he will disregard the clear will of the people and let it die through inaction.
