Florida Passes Voter ID Bill Modeled After SAVE Act

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times,

The Florida Legislature passed new election legislation modeled after President Donald Trump’s proposed SAVE America Act.

House Bill 991, sponsored by state Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, passed along party lines by a vote of 83 to 31.

“We are the Election Integrity State!” Persons-Mulicka wrote on X after the vote.

Sponsors of the bill moved the effective date to appease critics who feared the new identification requirements would discourage some voters from participating in midterm elections. The new laws won’t take effect until Jan. 1, 2027.

The bill requires Floridians to show proof of citizenship to register to vote, requires a valid photo ID to vote, makes paper ballots the primary method of voting, and bans student IDs as an acceptable voter ID.

Nearly all Florida driver’s licenses and ID cards are Real-ID compliant—a process that already verifies citizenship.

Once in place, the new regulations will also make it a felony for political parties, committees, organizations, and candidates to accept or solicit contributions from foreign nationals for any state elections.

Florida state Democrats voted against the bill, dubbing it the “Show Your Papers Act.”

Rep. Anna Eskamani, a Democrat representing Orlando, said the measure would restrict “all kinds of IDs Florida voters can use.”

“Student IDs and retirement center IDs would no longer be valid; driver’s licenses, state ID cards, military ID, and licenses to carry concealed weapons would still be accepted as proof of voter identity,” Eskamani said in a Facebook post.

The ACLU’s Florida Chapter condemned the measure’s passage, calling it an anti-voter bill.

“These changes are not neutral or harmless—they would fall hardest on low-income voters, students, seniors, women, and Black and brown Floridians,” said Bacardi Jackson, executive director of the ACLU Florida chapter.

“This wave of anti-voter legislation is advancing amid ongoing abuses of power that pose unprecedented threats to American democracy.”

Florida State Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, R-Fort Myers. Courtesy of the Florida House of Representatives

A similar effort by congressional Republicans has stalled for months in the U.S. Senate.

Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd encouraged Congress to move forward with the SAVE Act after Florida’s bill passed.

“Florida leads the nation in election integrity because we don’t rest on our laurels and are always looking to improve,” Byrd posted on X. “It’s now time for Congress to act on critical election integrity measures.”

Republican Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has been unable to advance the SAVE Act, despite growing pressure from the public and within his party.

Thune told colleagues on March 10 that he didn’t have the votes to pass the act by employing the talking filibuster. He plans to bring the bill to the Senate floor next week.