NEW: House Republicans Reveal Plan To Pass SAVE Act

House Republicans are moving to revive key pieces of the stalled SAVE America Act by using the budget reconciliation process, a maneuver that could allow the legislation to advance without clearing the Senate’s usual 60-vote threshold.

The election bill, backed by President Donald Trump, has repeatedly passed the House but remains stuck in the Senate, where Republicans do not have enough votes to overcome a filibuster without Democratic support.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil, R-Wis., are now pushing to include major portions of the bill in a reconciliation package that can pass the Senate with a simple majority.

“I’d rather pass the SAVE America Act. But recognizing that the Senate might not be able to get that done with the 60-vote threshold, let’s leverage the parliamentary procedure, bring that threshold down to 50, and get some really commonsense reforms done,” Steil told Fox News Digital in an interview. “I’ve been having great conversations with my colleagues in the administration as well as the Senate.”

The House Republican plan centers on two of the legislation’s biggest provisions: requiring proof of citizenship during voter registration and establishing a nationwide photo identification requirement for federal elections.

Democrats have fiercely opposed the legislation, arguing that the requirements could make voting or registration more difficult for eligible voters.

Republicans say the provisions are necessary to strengthen election safeguards and ensure that only U.S. citizens participate in federal elections.

Steil said he would like Congress to act before the November midterm elections, although the reconciliation process is complicated and time is running short.

“The House can go as fast as the Senate. And so the frustration that I and others have is the Senate’s not moving as fast as we would like on this. I actually think there’s 50 votes in the Senate for some of these really commonsense provisions,” Steil said. “I’d like to be sooner rather than later, but I don’t control them.”

House Republicans are moving to force key election integrity measures through Congress before the midterms — using the same budget reconciliation process that passed Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill.”

Rep. Bryan Steil, who chairs the Committee on House Administration, told Fox… pic.twitter.com/kKPJFJ7Pwn

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Reconciliation allows Congress to bypass the Senate filibuster for legislation that meets strict budgetary requirements. Both chambers must first approve budget instructions, after which congressional committees draft portions of the package.

The catch is that the Senate parliamentarian can strip provisions that are considered primarily policy changes rather than measures affecting federal spending, revenue or debt.

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Steil argues that election-related provisions could survive that process by tying them to federal funding distributed to states through the Help America Vote Act.

“We could free up those funds or enhance those funds for states to do those post-election audits, which is a really important part of election integrity. You can do the same in regards to photo ID,” he said, adding that making Real ID the standard could also effectively impact the citizenship mandate. “Effectively, when an individual gets REAL ID, they’re proving their citizenship.”

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The White House has also backed using reconciliation as a path forward.

“The White House is engaged. We’ve had good conversations,” Steil told Fox News Digital.

The House already approved a reconciliation framework this summer that included funding tied to election security and national defense.

The Senate has not yet completed its version, and significant differences remain between the two chambers over the overall size of the package.

Mike Johnson acknowledged that adding more provisions could slow down the process but said Republicans want to move quickly.

“I mean, the idea was, in keeping it skinny, is to move it quickly. And so the more you add to it, the more complex it gets, the more in the Senate — not to get too deep in the weeds — but procedurally, it involves more committees of jurisdiction in both bodies. And that’s where things start to get weighted down. So we’re very close to an election, the stakes are very high, the timing is short, and if you’re going to do election integrity measures, you need to do it, like, yesterday,” Johnson said. “We passed the SAVE America Act four times in the House. This is the last best effort to get it through the Senate, so I’m for doing it as quickly as possible.”

Steil said Republicans remain broadly aligned on the overall goal despite differences over spending levels.

“I think, broadly, we’re aligned. I think obviously the total numbers are different,” he said. “I think everyone recognizes the importance of making sure that our men and women in uniform have the resources needed to not only defend themselves but to defend our country… And also that we have the resources needed to make sure that we’re protecting our election.”

The strategy now hinges on whether Senate Republicans can craft a reconciliation bill that survives procedural review and keeps enough GOP senators on board to reach the 50 votes needed for passage.

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