SAVE Act Dominates Headlines, But Real Problem Is Closed Primaries
Open your inbox or social media feed and it’s clear: Anyone who cares about elections and politics is talking about the hotly contested SAVE Act, a MAGA-backed bill in the U.S. Senate intended to “secure American elections.”
The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which passed the House in 2025 and awaits a vote in the Senate, would require proof of citizenship to register to vote.
Organizations like the ACLU said that the SAVE Act could prevent eligible voters from casting ballots: “Laws like this have historically resulted in many eligible citizens being delayed or denied access to the ballot due to paperwork issues, database mismatches, or bureaucratic error,” voicing concern that a bill claiming to secure elections may, in fact, hinder voter participation.
Even some conservatives have expressed skepticism. National Review, the longstanding bulwark of the conservative movement, cautioned that the bill represents “a step in the wrong direction in federalizing elections.”
These groups are right to raise concerns. After all, it has been only a century since women gained the right to vote with the 19th Amendment, and a mere 60 years since the passage of the Voting Rights Act. And, even after these landmark legal victories, it was years before these groups were fully able to participate in the political process.
Anyone who cares about protecting the right to vote and the integrity of our elections ought to care about election law. But the SAVE Act is largely political theater. And those of us who care about representation and democracy might be missing the elephant (and donkey) in the room – state and local closed primaries that block millions of eligible, unaffiliated voters from full participation. Consider New York state.
New York state is home to about 20 million Americans (the fourth most populous state in the U.S.!) Yet the state maintains closed primaries in major municipal races, including in New York City and Buffalo. As a result, roughly 3.1 million independent voters are locked out of some of the most consequential elections in the state – including mayoral primaries, which almost always determine the ultimate winner. This group of unaffiliated voters is now the second-largest bloc in New York State and the fastest-growing.
The SAVE Act may make voting harder for certain groups, including married women who have changed their last names or Americans living overseas. Yet millions of independent voters are already barred from participating in critical elections simply because they are not registered with a political party. And data shows Americans are increasingly fed up with this system.
According to Unite NY’s recent Voter Empowerment Index, nearly 60% of New Yorkers support open primaries. National polling shows similar trends. A recent RealClear Opinion Research poll found that nearly three in four respondents (73%) believe open primaries would produce candidates who appeal to a broader majority of voters.
Open primaries, in some form, already exist in 15 states, including Georgia, Missouri, and Michigan, allowing voters to participate in primary elections without formally joining a political party. And open primaries can create an electorate that is more representative of people’s actual preferences. A report from the Bipartisan Policy Center shows, “When states allow unaffiliated voters to participate in primaries for the first time, voter turnout increases, and the electorate grows more demographically and politically representative.”
And the number of voters seeking independence is growing. According to Gallup, roughly 45% of Americans now identify as independent. In other words, nearly half of Americans don’t identify as Democrat or Republican, and while they might register with a party for purposes of voting in a primary – that party, or even the candidates, may not speak for them.
While Washington debates the SAVE Act, Americans of all stripes who are fed up with the status quo, bickering, and cable news and social media hot takes ought to turn their attention to their hometown closed primaries that actually keep them from voting.