John Thune will bring SAVE Act to a vote in Senate, but cannot guarantee passage

John Thune (R-SD) assured that he will send the SAVE Act, a Republican election reform proposal, to a vote. The bill would require people registering to vote in federal elections to present proof of citizenship and a photo ID. However, the Republican majority leader in the Senate remarked that he cannot guarantee a successful vote.

The main stumbling block to the bill's passage is that the votes are not there to remove a Senate rule known as filibuster. This requires at least 60 votes (the GOP has 53) to end debate on a bill and bring it to a vote. Even Donald Trump has publicly lobbied to eliminate this historic rule, something most Senate Republicans do not support.

"That debate will happen. But like I said, I can guarantee the debate. I can guarantee a vote. I just can't guarantee an outcome," Thune told a news conference with other Republican leaders.

In addition, he was not optimistic about getting seven Democratic votes to pass the SAVE Act, which got the go-ahead from the House of Representatives.

"I think you have a lot of optimists out there, and I appreciate that, and a lot of passion and energy behind getting an outcome here. But getting an outcome would require Democrat votes. (...) And, you know, we'll give them a chance. Like I said, they'll have that opportunity to vote one way or the other on this. But I would be very, very surprised," he added.

Specifically, the bill would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA) to allow states to require proof of citizenship when registering a voter in federal elections. In addition, it would add a requirement to show a photo ID when voting. Republicans have defended the legislation as a step toward "common sense."