The SAVE Act Could Threaten Voting Access—And Repeat History.

The article focuses on the potential voting disenfranchisement of married American women under the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, passed by the House of Representatives in 2025. It draws parallels to the 1907 Expatriation Act, which stripped U.S.-born women of citizenship upon marrying non-citizens, thereby preventing them from voting, as exemplified by suffragist Ethel Mackenzie's case. The SAVE Act requires proof of citizenship through documentation that may not reflect married women's current legal names, such as birth certificates bearing their maiden names, potentially barring millions from voter registration. The article situates this issue within a historical context of nativist policies and legal battles over women's independent citizenship, highlighting ongoing tensions between election security measures and voting rights.