WATCH: Civil Rights Leaders And Impacted Voters Speak in Opposition to the SAVE Act

Access a recording of today’s press conference HERE ¹

WASHINGTON — Today, civil rights leaders and impacted voters came together to highlight the devastating impact the SAVE Act would have on our communities and our power to make the decisions that shape our futures. As the U.S. House of Representatives prepares to put the SAVE Act (H.R. 22) up for a vote this week, our elected officials must put voters first and reject this dangerous attack on the freedom to vote of all. 

The speakers highlighted the harmful consequences of the SAVE Act and other attempted power grabs to suppress our vote, and discussed urgent actions needed to protect everyone’s freedom to vote. The SAVE Act would create significant barriers to voting, preventing us from holding our elected officials accountable and addressing issues that matter most to our communities — like health care, jobs, and economic security. From the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to the Freedom to Vote Act, we support real solutions to ensure our democracy works for all. 

Leslie Proll, senior director for voting rights for The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said: “The SAVE Act is a direct attack on our freedom to vote and a dangerous attempt to silence the voices of millions — particularly voters of color, low-income families, women, and young people — by erecting barriers to the ballot box. Let’s be clear: this is not about safeguarding elections. It is about stripping power from the people and undermining our democracy. But our communities are not backing down. We are standing united — organizing, resisting, and rising to protect the hard-won rights generations have fought to secure. This is a fight for the foundation of our freedoms. And just like those who came before us, we will not stop until We have a multiracial democracy for all where every voice is heard.”

Christine Wood, Co-Director, Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, said: “Our democracy works best when all of us, regardless of color, party, income, or zip code, have an equal say in the decisions that shape our future. But right now, a faction of extremist politicians are lying about our elections to justify and pass a radical political agenda to restrict voting for millions of eligible Americans. Instead of proceeding with this dangerous voter suppression bill, Congress should take actions that will strengthen our elections and ensure that all eligible voters have access to the ballot box.”

Deborah Dicks Maxwell, President of North Carolina NAACP, said: “Let’s call this bill what it is: the federal version of voter suppression. A solution to a problem that doesn’t exist, but that creates very real consequences for the most vulnerable among us. And we’ve seen this before. We’ve seen laws that look neutral on paper but are devastating in practice. We’ve seen poll taxes and literacy tests. We’ve seen precinct closures and voter purges. The tactics change, but the goal stays the same: to shrink the electorate and silence those who most need to be heard. But the NAACP has never been in the business of silence. We are in the business of justice.”

John C. Yang, President and Executive Director at Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, said: “We urge members of Congress to oppose the SAVE Act, which would disenfranchise millions of Americans who are eligible to vote by stoking fear against immigrant communities. Instead of preventing the false problem of noncitizen voting, the Act’s requirement for documentary proof of citizenship upon voter registration would block millions of people, including naturalized citizens, who lack access to the respective documents or have mismatched documents due to name changes from being able to vote. This risk is amplified for the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community, of which nearly 50% are naturalized citizens. Our representatives must instead look to advance our democracy through policies that protect and expand voting access and embrace the diversity of our nation.”

More than 35 civil rights and democracy organizations shared their strong opposition to the SAVE Act. You can read their statements here².