Trump Cites India’s Election System As Model For Stricter US Voter ID Rules

US President Donald Trump has cited India’s electoral system as a model for the United States as he renewed his call for stricter voter identification requirements and urged Congress to pass the SAVE America Act.

Trump referred to a question he said India’s Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had recently raised with his administration about the absence of a nationwide photo identification requirement in US elections.

Trump highlighted the scale of India’s elections and its voter identification system while making the case for changes to US federal election procedures.

Trump Backs Stricter Voter ID Rules

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said India’s last election had 646 million voters and claimed that less than 1% voted by mail, while every voter was required to have a valid photo identity document.

He used the figures to reiterate his demand that Congress pass the SAVE America Act.

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor also backed Trump’s position, saying India’s election system demonstrated the importance of voter identification requirements.

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117113347902795107

What Does The SAVE America Act Propose?

The Republican-led House passed a revised version of the legislation in February by 218-213, with one Democrat joining Republicans. An earlier version, known as the SAVE Act, had passed the House in April but stalled in the Senate.

The proposed legislation would require voters to provide documentary proof of US citizenship before registering to vote in federal elections. It would also require voters to present valid photo identification at polling stations.

Acceptable citizenship documents would include a US passport, certain government-issued identification cards, a birth certificate or a military identification card accompanied by service records showing a US birthplace.

The legislation would also direct states to identify and remove non-citizens from voter rolls using information from state agencies, the Social Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.

Democrats Oppose The Bill

Trump has separately called for mail-in voting to be restricted to cases involving illness, disability, military service or travel.

Republicans argue that the legislation would strengthen election security and ensure that only US citizens participate in federal elections.

However, Democrats argue that stricter identification and citizenship-document requirements could prevent eligible citizens from voting, particularly low-income people and others who may have difficulty obtaining government-issued identification or citizenship documents.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer has said the legislation would be “dead on arrival” in the Senate.