The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday, March 26, 2026, on whether photo ID should be required to vote in federal elections. (Getty Images)
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate failed to agree Thursday on whether to require photo ID to vote in federal elections, as the chamber debated a larger bill that would make several changes to how Americans register and vote.
The 53-47 procedural vote rejected an amendment from Ohio Republican Sen. Jon Husted to the SAVE America Act, which President Donald Trump and some GOP lawmakers say is an imperative piece of legislation but which Democrats say will make it harder for Americans to vote.
The bill already contained a section very similar to the amendment, but the vote gave Republicans a chance to go on the record with Democrats as to whether they supported voter ID for voting.
California Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla urged lawmakers to oppose the change, saying the vote was a sign of “showmanship and theatrics” from Republicans.
Padilla said the measure would have prevented people from using student ID cards or tribal ID cards without an expiration date to “participate in our democracy even though they are eligible to do so.”
Requiring photo ID to vote, he said, would also create an “additional and unnecessary barrier” to the tens of millions of Americans who vote by mail.
“In the 2024 election, 48 million voters chose to vote by mail,” he said. “And in case you missed the breaking news a few days ago, President Trump voted by mail again in the special election in Florida. So what’s good enough for the president but not good enough for the rest of us? Safe enough for the president, but not safe enough for the American people?”
Republicans defend photo ID
Husted said during the floor debate on the proposal that his amendment was “clear, simple and straightforward.”
“States across our country have shown that you can simultaneously make it easy to vote and harder to cheat,” he said. “Georgia, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, and my home state of Ohio all have photo ID requirements, just to name a few.”
Husted said it is “common sense” that Americans prove who they are when they vote.
“Americans are required to show photo ID when renting a car, starting a job or boarding a plane. It’s something people do every day,” he said.
New rules for mail-in ballots
The the change would have required everyone voting in person to present poll workers with a valid photo ID, which would include a driver’s license, state-issued identification card, U.S. passport, military ID issued by the Department of Defense or the Department of Veterans Affairs, or a tribal ID card with an expiration date.
Americans submitting a mail-in ballot must submit a copy of their photo ID. If a voter was unable to do so for some reason, they could submit the last four digits of their Social Security number along with an affidavit stating that they were unable to provide a copy of their ID.
The provision would have required state or local election officials to ensure “to the extent practicable” that people have access to a digital scanner and printer to copy their photo IDs for their mail-in ballots.
State election officials would have been required to inform people about the recent photo ID requirement for voting when they cast their votes.
The bill itself contains several other provisionshas no chance of advancing in the Senate amid Democratic opposition. Major legislation cannot advance without the support of at least 60 senators, a procedural step known as a legislative filibuster.
Republicans earlier this week floated the possibility Move parts of the package through the complicated process of budget reconciliationAlthough several Republican senators acknowledged it will be hard to advance a policy proposal along a path designed to make changes to federal tax, spending and debt limit issues.
