WASHINGTON – The Republican-led House of Representatives on Feb. 11 passed a bill favored by President Donald Trump to mandate proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections.
The bill, called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE America, Act, would require voters show a government-issued photo ID to cast their ballots. Polling shows support for photo ID requirements in elections is widespread in both political parties.
Yet the measure would potentially prevent millions of Americans from voting, according to independent experts and voting rights groups. And it would create broadly defined criminal penalties for election officials who register voters that haven't adequately provided evidence of their citizenship.
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The legislation faces an uncertain future in the GOP-controlled Senate, where 60 votes are needed for passage and other versions of the same legislation have already stalled.
