What Older Voters Need to Know About the SAVE America Act

Proposed legislation would require Americans to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote—documents many don’t have

Miriam Cross,

AARP

Comments

Published February 26, 2026

a passport with i voted stickers and a birth certificate

AARP (Getty Images,3)

Older adults are a force in deciding U.S. elections.

Voters 65 and older have had the highest turnout of any age group since 1988, with 72 percent casting ballots in 2020. For the 2024 election, voters 50 and older made up 55 percent of the electorate.

But a bill that passed the House of Representatives could make it harder for U.S. citizens 50 and older to exercise these rights. The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, or SAVE America Act, would require Americans to provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections, even though citizenship is already a requirement to vote. The proposal would also compel voters to show valid photo identification at the polls or submit a copy of their ID when mailing a ballot. The bill is awaiting a vote in the Senate.

These rules, if adopted, would provide a challenge to millions of Americans as they seek to vote. The obstacles could be even more significant for older adults who may have changed their names, addresses or political parties since the last election.

“As Congress considers changes to voting procedures, we urge caution on their implementation and how they will impact the ability of older Americans to vote in primaries and the general election,” wrote Bill Sweeney, AARP’s senior vice president of government affairs, in a letter to Senate Rules Committee leaders on Feb. 23.

Voters will have to prove their eligibility

Only a few documents, such as a U.S. passport or a birth certificate in conjunction with a valid form of photo ID, will satisfy the proposed requirements in the SAVE America Act. The Brennan Center for Justice, a nonpartisan law and policy organization, estimates that more than 21 million Americans of voting age don’t have easy access to documents that confirm citizenship. Roughly half of Americans 65 and older lack a passport, according to a YouGov survey from 2023. If your passport has expired, you will need weeks (and must pay a fee) to renew it. Older Americans who have moved often over the span of their lives, or have moved out of their homes and into nursing or assisted living facilities, may have an especially tough time gathering the required proof of eligibility.

Most Popular

It’s also complicated for those who can easily locate the right papers.

For example, if you have changed your name and it no longer matches the name on your birth certificate, you may have to provide another document, such as a marriage certificate, to corroborate your identity. Among women married to men, eighty-five percent of those 50 and older took their husband’s last name when they wed, according to Pew Research Center data from 2023.

Will in-person voter registration be required?

Most states allow their residents to register to vote online. But if the SAVE America Act passes, the voter registration process may no longer be as simple as filling out a form online or dropping a paper form in the mail. Chris Diaz, director of legislative tracking at Voting Rights Lab, a nonprofit organization that tracks and analyzes election policy, points to language in the bill that says these documents must be “presented” with the application. If states adopt this practice in the strictest sense of the word, it could cause a hardship for those with mobility issues, for caregivers and for those in nursing homes.

“This could change the way most people are used to registering to vote,” Diaz says.

What to Know About Voting in 2026

AARP is a nonpartisan organization that never supports or opposes candidates for office. We believe the right to vote is fundamental and we advocate for policies ensuring that Americans 50 and older can exercise that right without unnecessary barriers. Here’s what you can do to help:

Learn more about voting in your state this year.
Pledge to vote for candidates in 2026 who will protect and strengthen Social Security.
Sign up to become an AARP activist for the latest news and alerts on issues you care about.

Currently 36 states request or require some form of identification at the polls — although not all require one with a photo — while 14 states and the District of Columbia verify a voter’s identity through other means. The SAVE America Act would require that people provide a valid photo ID, such as a driver’s license, at the ballot box, which could cause additional headaches for aging Americans. Diaz points out that older adults may not have valid driver’s licenses if they have stopped driving. In fact, about 30 percent of those 85 and older no longer have a license, according to Federal Highway Administration data from 2023.

The ability to mail in a ballot is crucial for older adults who have mobility limitations that prevent them from getting to the polls in person. Roughly 1 in 7 Americans age 65 and older have a disability that makes it hard for them to travel outside of their home, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The SAVE America Act explicitly allows mail-in voters to include a copy of their ID with their ballots, but that means the voter must have easy access to a photocopier or printer.

The bill also allows mail-in voters to submit the last four digits of their Social Security number in lieu of a photo ID. But that opens people up to fraud and identity theft.

“Criminals will target election mail and ballot envelopes if they know it contains copies of sensitive identity documents or Social Security information,” Sweeney warned in his letter.

All told, the time, effort and money to locate or replace any documents could deter many eligible citizens from voting.

“Changing the required documents necessary to vote too close to an election could prevent older voters from obtaining the right document in time,” Sweeney wrote.

At the same time, instances of noncitizens registering or attempting to vote are rare. States have ongoing processes for confirming that only eligible citizens vote.

“Every attempt from state election officials to check their voter rolls has come to that same conclusion,” Diaz says. “Voter rolls are clean.”

%{postComment}%