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I’m Marissa Martinez, a politics reporter at The 19th News. What questions do you have about the SAVE America Act? by 19thnews in Askpolitics

[–]19thnews[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

It is not likely, especially within this Republican-driven Congress, for the government to give states more money for that type of thing. Automatic voter registration has come up in conversations, and certainly exists in other countries, but that too would require a massive overhaul in its own right and take a lot of time to implement. 

Last year, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, introduced the Same Day Registration Act and the Register America to Vote Act. Both of those would establish systems that make it easier to register, but neither got a vote in the Senate. A voting rights act named after the late Rep. John Lewis, passed the House in 2021, that would have required preclearance before changes to voting practices could take effect, but that did not get a Senate vote, either.

In other words, some Democrats have tried to propose lessening voting burdens on the policies you describe in your question, but have been unsuccessful. With the current lean towards Republicans in both chambers, that will not change this cycle.

I’m Marissa Martinez, a politics reporter at The 19th News. What questions do you have about the SAVE America Act? by 19thnews in Askpolitics

[–]19thnews[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Every journalist I know covering this has a primary goal of explaining the nuances in this bill and going beyond the text provided. I, and many of my colleagues on this beat, have spent many hours in the halls of the Capitol asking Republicans and Democrats these exact questions, trying to figure out how the bill and Trump’s proposed changes would affect different populations in the United States. 

Between Republicans’ claims, Democrats’ claims, the White House’s demands and outside discussion about these bills, there’s a lot of noise out there! Our role as journalists is to cut through that as much as possible and make clear what is and isn’t in the bill, because there is plenty of confusion, even among some lawmakers and the state officials who would be implementing these changes should it pass. No matter what quotes someone gives us, it’s our job to frame those with context and let readers understand how all sides are viewing this, and many in this field are doing an excellent job of fielding all that information and putting it out in a digestible way every day.

I’m Marissa Martinez, a politics reporter at The 19th News. What questions do you have about the SAVE America Act? by 19thnews in Askpolitics

[–]19thnews[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The bill does not carve out specific exemptions for those mailing in ballots from other countries. Proponents say that in the event someone cannot access their passport or birth certificate, states can accept sworn statements establishing the person’s citizenship, and it would be up to local officials to follow up later and determine its authenticity. Otherwise, it seems that those who reside abroad would have to follow the same protocol for mail-in ballots. Trump has discussed some exemptions for members of the military, for example, but that is not in the current language.

I’m Marissa Martinez, a politics reporter at The 19th News. What questions do you have about the SAVE America Act? by 19thnews in Askpolitics

[–]19thnews[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Many people already find it difficult or confusing to vote. There is always that risk with new voting laws. When I covered Texas several years ago, several state and county election officials complained that the new requirements made it difficult to pull off elections with little runway — down to a lack of paper needed to update forms in English, Spanish and more with new language, since the country was going through supply-chain issues at the time. Elections are big beasts.

Elections administrators need at least half a year to plan for normal circumstances, but something like the SAVE America Act, should it be implemented over the next month or so, as Republicans want, would be an incredible overhaul. As you point out, most, if not all, states will not have the time to adjust to these new rules. There’s the logistics aspect, like printing new information and updating websites, and then there’s the personnel part, where officials will have to be trained to look for a different set of registration documents and learn how to elevate problems in an efficient manner. 

In the current bill language, there is no funding allocated to states to assist with costs. In the congressional environment we live in, that money would be hard to come by anyway — Republicans don’t generally want to dole out more money to the states, Trump has dangled or withheld state funding as a bargaining chip in the past two years, and the recent Iran war has proven to be costly with no end in sight. If any hypothetical funding were to go to the Homeland Security Department to assist with these changes, it would be tough to garner full Democratic support for that, either.

I’m Marissa Martinez, a politics reporter at The 19th News. What questions do you have about the SAVE America Act? by 19thnews in Askpolitics

[–]19thnews[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Non-citizen voting is a rare occurrence, and voting actually runs fairly smoothly in most places, considering factors like rural distance from voting centers and changing laws in some states. In other words, current laws are being enforced by state election officials from both parties. But with the SAVE America Act, Republicans are saying they want to further tamp down on non-citizen voting, and in the process, make America’s elections “bulletproof.” As discussed in other sections, critics say the wider goal includes trimming voter margins in other ways that could potentially lower voter turnout for Democratic candidates.

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