SAVE America Act unlikely to affect 2026 election even if Senate passes it

President Donald Trump‘s push to pass the SAVE America Act has divided the Senate GOP, but even if the election integrity measure were to pass, it would likely not be in effect for the 2026 midterm elections. The Senate left Washington on Thursday without having moved the bill, despite pressure from Trump and MAGA allies […]

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President Donald Trump‘s push to pass the SAVE America Act has divided the Senate GOP, but even if the election integrity measure were to pass, it would likely not be in effect for the 2026 midterm elections.

The Senate left Washington on Thursday without having moved the bill, despite pressure from Trump and MAGA allies to blow up the filibuster and pass the measure. Senators will return on Monday for a week of legislative action before leaving town for a six-week recess.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has already signaled that the SAVE America Act will not be on the agenda in the four days left before the break. Thune has repeatedly stressed that there isn’t enough support for the bill to bypass the 60-vote threshold to avoid a filibuster. That hasn’t stopped Trump from heavily pressuring Thune to scrap the filibuster or put the bill on the floor and force Republican senators to take a vote on the record.

Yet, even if the pressure campaign were to succeed, it might be too late to implement the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and a voter ID to cast a ballot nationwide.

Legal experts point to the Purcell principle, an idea that federal courts should refrain from changing voting or election rules too close to an election to avoid confusing voters or creating chaos. The principle originally stems from the 2006 Supreme Court case Purcell v. Gonzalez, which vacated a lower court’s order blocking an Arizona voter ID law and reinstated the provision roughly two weeks before the midterm elections.

“If for some reason it were to pass, I am very confident at this late date, less than 100 days before the election, it would be blocked,” said David Becker, Center for Election Innovation and Research founder. “There’s no way to implement it. And it would be hard to implement two years before an election; it’s impossible to implement three months before an election, and so there’s just no … realistic path for it to impact the 2026 elections.”

Becker pointed to the chaos that could happen over the next few months if the bill’s requirement for documentary proof of citizenship and photo ID every time a person registers to vote takes hold.

“This is a huge burden on so many voters, including many Republican voters, and no one wants to implement it, and it doesn’t really yield any kind of integrity benefit,” he said

Steve Bannon, who served as Trump’s 2016 chief strategist, agreed that it was likely too late to implement the SAVE America Act this election cycle.

“Because the bill after August 4, there’s federal law that you can’t go in and start changing the voter rolls,” Bannon said in an interview with the Washington Examiner. “It’s like a 60-day or 90-day holdback on that. So we’re over the point of no return on America first.”

Bannon put the blame squarely on Thune for failing to wrangle the votes needed to pass the measure, which has widespread support among the GOP base and has ostensibly been co-sponsored by an overwhelming majority of the Senate Republican conference.

“He’s just the wrong personality for a time like this,” Bannon added. “This is where you need fighters. John Thune is not a fighter.”

Some of the SAVE America Act’s strongest supporters appeared nonplussed that it wouldn’t affect the November elections in response to the Washington Examiner‘s requests.

“The best time to pass the SAVE America Act was two years ago, the next best time is today, and the third best time is tomorrow,” said Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT). “I don’t mind making Democrats defend the indefensible — their opposition to proof of citizenship for voting — between now and November. But as Vice President Vance recently said, this is bigger than the 2026 elections: it’s about securing America’s elections for generations to come.”

Lee is among the growing number of Republican senators and Trump who have called upon Thune to cancel the five-week August recess to force lawmakers to vote and pass the legislation.

Jenny Beth Martin, chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action, which has lobbied heavily for the bill, echoed Trump’s claim that the Senate should vote on the bill immediately.

“First, let’s not let the perfect be the enemy of the good,” Martin said. “If Congress agrees with the vast majority of the electorate that documentary proof of citizenship should be required to register and a photo ID should be required to vote, then passing it as soon as possible is a good thing, regardless of how soon it can be implemented.

“Second, many states already have much of the necessary infrastructure in place,” Martin said. “All they need is the go-ahead from the federal government. Third, state election administrators can make alterations to their election procedures on faster timelines than they’re given credit for. The country wants the SAVE America Act passed. The House has acted. It’s time for the Senate to step up.”

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But Becker disagreed that election administrators are prepared to enact the SAVE America Act if it were to pass. Thune has also suggested that canceling recess would stop vulnerable Republicans from much-needed time to campaign in their home states for reelection.

“The election officials in this country, Republicans and Democrats all over this country at the state and county level, are in the middle of election season,” Becker said. “Primaries have been going on since early March, and they are working to make sure that any eligible American voter who wants to participate can cast a ballot in this fall’s general election. The ship has sailed on any major changes.”