Republicans in Congress continue their quest to buck the U.S. Constitution and make elections a function of the federal government instead of the states.

The latest attempt was made with the resuscitation of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE, Act, a bill that has the backing of President Donald Trump. The bill passed the House and awaits a vote in the Senate, where reportedly 50 senators have indicated their support. Trump claims that elections are rife with fraud and that noncitizens are voting. Neither is true, according to election directors nationwide and several studies, including one by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

Trump hasn’t been quiet about his support: “The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting,” he said on the Dan Bongino Show this month.

Let’s be clear. Noncitizens aren’t eligible to vote in official elections. When registering to vote in Washington, residents attest in writing that they are eligible. It is a Class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison for a noncitizen who votes.

People who are undocumented or who are not citizens typically fly under the radar of any governmental agency that can initiate a deportation petition, such as law enforcement. So why do people who aren’t eligible turn out in droves, taking such a risk just to vote? The answer: They don’t. In King County, of 12 cases of potential voter fraud in the 2024 presidential election that were referred to the prosecutor’s office for investigation, not one was for a case of a noncitizen casting a vote, King County Elections Director Julie Wise said.

The bill would require anyone who registers to vote to produce, in person, either a birth certificate that proves citizenship or a U.S. passport. The bill is not about making voting safe, it’s about voter suppression, period. Put more and more barriers before citizens and those without means — a passport, a readily accessible birth certificate — and they can’t register. About 49% of Americans don’t have passports. These documents also come with a cost, which goes against elections being free and fair.

The SAVE Act will also burden military families, who would be required to present citizenship documentation every time they re-register when they move.

And just because Washington votes by mail doesn’t mean we wouldn’t be affected. About 2.8 million Washingtonians don’t have passports. And 1.6 million Washington women who have taken their spouse’s name don’t have IDs that match the name on their birth certificate. There are also military bases here.

In addition to the bill being anti-democratic, it would be costly to change voting systems, and nearly impossible to do so in time for the August primaries.

“There’s zero funding to do this,” said Wise, whose budget was cut last year along with other county departments.

Any member of Congress who considers themselves duly and fairly elected in 2024, free of any voter fraud, should vote against the SAVE Act, and keep in place the same voting system that put them in office.

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The Seattle Times editorial board: members are editorial page editor Kate Riley, Ryan Blethen, Melissa Davis, Josh Farley, Alex Fryer, Claudia Rowe, Carlton Winfrey, Frank A. Blethen (emeritus) and William K. Blethen (emeritus).

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