Recently, there have been petitioners collecting signatures at Grand Valley State University in support of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act.
The bill would require proof of U.S. citizenship for voter registration, as well as documentation for voter identification matching one’s name to their birth certificate. Government-issued driver’s licenses, REAL IDs and military or tribal IDs would not be considered acceptable documents, as only passports or birth certificates would be compliant. The act passed the House of Representatives in April, and is currently waiting to be passed in the Senate. Many students at GVSU have expressed concern over the implications of the petition and associated legislation, which may impact married women who have changed their surnames, as well as transgender voters and naturalized citizens.
Upon seeing SAVE Act petitioners on campus, student protesters played punk music near their table. Nyx Olmstead, a senior studying history and education, held a small sign saying, “Smart people don’t sign petitions rooted in racism.”
Olmstead was “not thrilled” with the petitioners. According to Olmstead, petitioners seemed to be interrupting students who were on their way to class, harassing them and asking for signatures without fully disclosing what they were signing.
“We’re supposed to be shaping the future into a better one, not making it actively worse for marginalized communities,” Olmstead said. “Simply put, I think the SAVE Act is racism disguised in legal jargon and fallacy, and anyone who actually reads it and understands basic history can see that.”
Whitt Kilburn, associate professor of political science, feels the bill could have harmful effects, and radically change how states determine voter eligibility.
“It appears to be President Donald Trump pushing the bill through Congress,” Kilburn said. “In the past, (Trump) has openly supported the conspiracy theory that millions of illegal immigrants or non-citizens are voting in U.S. elections. This conspiracy theory is, of course, false.”
Kilburn also explained that if the bill were to pass the Senate and be signed into law, the act would drive down voter turnout, affecting Republican Party support as much, or even more, than support for the Democratic Party. The SAVE Act could also upend online voter registration and eliminate voter registration drives. Voters could no longer mail in registration applications; they would have to show up in person with documentation to complete registration.
“Many Americans just don’t have these documents and requiring people to register in person is yet another burden,” Kilburn said.
Kilburn doesn’t consider there to be a current crisis of non-citizens voting, and questioned what exactly SAVE Act supporters are trying to achieve.
“Traditionally in our federalist governing system, U.S. states have been able to set specific requirements for voter identification (or have been) given broad standards (and) limits set by federal law,” Kilburn said. “There would likely be a lot of unforeseen consequences for elections.”
Kilburn encourages students who want to be involved politically to register to vote if they haven’t, join civic organizations and contact their elected officials to discuss their concerns.
