Poll: Utahns weigh in on voter ID and elections

Utah voters overwhelmingly support providing proof of citizenship and a form of photo identification when casting a ballot in elections, indicating support for the requirements being proposed in Utah Sen. Mike Lee’s SAVE America Act.

Roughly 66% of Utah voters say they support showing proof of U.S. citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, when registering to vote, according to a Deseret News-Hinckley Institute of Politics poll conducted by Morning Consult. Only 26% say they oppose providing that documentation, while 6% say they don’t know.

Even more Utahns believe voters should show photo identification when they go to cast their ballots in an election, the poll shows. About 81% of Utah voters say they support requiring photo identification when they vote, compared to just 14% who say they oppose.

Only 4% said they were unsure.

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The poll indicates massive support for the two main components of the SAVE America Act, an election reform bill being pushed by Lee in Congress. Lee has urged his colleagues for months to pass the legislation, which has been stalled in the Senate due to Democratic opposition.

That party-line opposition was evident in the statewide polling as Republicans were far more likely than Democrats to support proof-of-citizenship and voter ID requirements in elections.

When it comes to providing documentation when registering to vote, 86% of Republicans said they approve of those requirements compared to just 30% of Democrats, according to the poll. Roughly two-thirds of Democrats (64%) overall said they opposed requirements to provide proof of citizenship.

That split was especially discernible when it came to female voters in both parties, likely stemming from contradicting arguments that requiring documentation such as birth certificates could make it more difficult for married women to vote. A vast majority of Republican women (85%) say they support the proof-of-citizenship requirement while only 27% of women who identify as Democrats said the same.

Democrats have argued for months the SAVE America Act would disenfranchise married women whose last names no longer match their birth certificates, a primary reason they give for opposing the proposal. Lee has objected to those claims, noting his proposal provides alternative ways to prove one’s citizenship.

However, Democrats were more open to photo identification requirements when going to cast a ballot. Sixty percent of Democrats say they supported showing photo identification when voting, with only 36% saying they’d oppose those requirements, the poll showed.

Still, Republicans were far more supportive of photo ID: 95% of GOP voters say they want identification requirements when voting, and only 4% said they’d oppose it, according to the survey.

SAVE America Act blocked in Senate

Although there is wide support for the main components of the SAVE America Act, efforts to establish proof-of-citizenship and voter ID requirements have been blocked in Congress. Much of that has to do with the latest iteration of Lee’s election bill, which would implement stricter requirements for those voting by mail or with absentee ballots that has further eroded support from Democrats and some Republicans.

Lee initially threatened to block the Senate from going on its annual August recess until the SAVE America Act was passed, but the chamber ultimately adjourned for the five-week period without a roll call vote. Instead, Republicans teed up a vote on a standalone proposal to require voter ID in federal elections, an effort that was shot down by Democrats.

Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso told the Deseret News during a recent visit to Utah that the SAVE Act would “absolutely” be a priority for the Senate when lawmakers return to Washington, but first Congress needs to fully fund the government past the November midterms.

After recent reports that New Jersey mistakenly registered 6,000 noncitizens to vote, Lee told the Deseret News it would be “crazy” not to move forward with the legislation.

Related: FACT FOCUS: Only some driver’s licenses usable for voter registration under the SAVE America Act

“It’s a form of insanity to conclude that we should not do this, to conclude that we shouldn’t move heaven and earth to get it done,” Lee told the Deseret News. “It’s leaving our entire system of government in great jeopardy.”

Even if the Senate did approve the SAVE America Act, it would likely be too late for states to implement those changes before the midterm elections.

The National Voter Registration Act dictates that when a state administers a program to “systematically remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of eligible voters,” it has to be done 90 days before a primary or general election. Election Day is on Nov. 3, so that deadline passed during the first full week of August.

Contributing: Brigham Tomco