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In recent weeks, much attention has been given to the passage in the U.S. House of Representatives of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act. While this is the second time this legislation—which would require voters to provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote—passed the House, its viability in the Senate appears much less likely. Senator Chuck Schumer, the Minority Leader, has already vowed to use the filibuster to block the SAVE Act’s passage.
Even though the SAVE Act’s future in Washington might be in doubt, efforts are underway at the state level to pass similar laws that ensure only American citizens vote.
In Texas, lawmakers are considering a bill similar to the SAVE Act. The Texas legislation would mandate that voters provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote and impose criminal penalties on election administrators who knowingly register voters without verifying their U.S. citizenship. Voters who don’t provide proof of citizenship would only be eligible to vote in federal elections.
Lawmakers in red states like Texas aren’t the only ones taking up this cause. In Pennsylvania, America’s most “purple” state, one Republican member of the state House of Representatives recently introduced a state version of the SAVE Act. Given that Democrats control the lower house of the Pennsylvania state legislature, passage of this bill seems unlikely.
The state level push to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote isn’t just taking place in state legislatures. In Michigan, average citizens are taking up this cause themselves. An effort is underway to put a constitutional amendment on the 2026 ballot that would require voters provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote. Organizers recently began collecting signatures of Michigan voters to put this question on the ballot. To get a spot on the 2026 ballot, over 440,000 Michiganders will need to sign a petition in support of the amendment.
For many states, enacting measures to prevent noncitizens from voting predates Washington’s effort to pass the SAVE Act. In 2022, voters in the Buckeye State overwhelmingly approved an amendment—known as Issue 2—to the state constitution explicitly prohibiting noncitizens from voting. Two years later, on Election Day 2024, eight states held referenda on banning noncitizens from voting; voters approved all of these referenda.
Within the last year, at least two states—Louisiana and Wyoming—have enacted laws similar to the SAVE Act. Louisiana’s law was approved in 2024 and became effective on January 1, 2025. Wyoming’s proof of citizenship requirement became law earlier this year; Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon allowed it to become law without his signature. It takes effect on July 1, 2025.
While it’s possible that some centrist Senate Democrats might vote to break a filibuster of the SAVE Act, none have, so far, committed to do so. As long as no Senate Democrats break ranks, Sen. Schumer’s filibuster will succeed, and the SAVE Act will never make it to a vote on the Senate floor.
Interest in legislation preventing noncitizens from voting doesn’t look like it will be diminishing anytime soon. While the SAVE Act’s future on Capitol Hill might look uncertain, in the near term, many of the aims of the SAVE Act are likely to be realized through the work of state leaders in a number of America’s state capitals.
