1. United States
2. N.J.
3. Letter

I am writing as a deeply concerned New Jersey voter to urge you to vote against the SAVE Act. As written, this legislation would impose unnecessary and burdensome requirements on citizens who already have the lawful right to vote. The right to vote is a foundational pillar of our democracy, and any policy that erects new barriers—especially without evidence of a real problem—risks disenfranchising eligible voters and weakening public trust in our electoral system. For New Jersey residents, the harm would be immediate and significant, especially with the mid term election approaching later this year. Our state relies heavily on mail in ballots, which are essential to ensuring fair and accessible elections for voters across New Jersey and within our county. In the last general election, New Jersey voters submitted 4.3 million ballots, with nearly one million cast by mail—clear evidence of how deeply residents depend on the convenience and accessibility of this voting method. Requiring documentary proof of U.S. citizenship for mail in voting would impose an unnecessary burden on citizens who have been properly registered for decades. It would disproportionately affect married/divorced women, seniors, students, veterans, caregivers, rural residents, low income and disabled individuals, and anyone facing mobility or transportation challenges. These are precisely the voters who rely most on mail in ballots to participate fully in our democracy. New Jerseyans have made it unmistakably clear that they value a streamlined, reliable mail in voting process, and any attempt to restrict it would silence a significant portion of the electorate. Most importantly, over the past four decades, a substantial body of non-partisan research has consistently shown that non-citizen voting is virtually nonexistent in the United States. Numerous studies, including those conducted by both conservative and progressive organizations, have failed to uncover any meaningful evidence of widespread or systematic non-citizen participation in our elections. Two examples: (1) Data from the Heritage Foundation revealed only 24 to 77 suspected cases nationwide between 2003 and 2023, despite hundreds of millions of votes cast during that period. (2) The Brennan Center reported just about 30 suspected cases out of 23.5 million votes in the 2016 election. These findings make it abundantly clear that claims of non-citizen voting are not supported by the evidence, and imposing burdensome restrictions to address a problem that does not exist would only serve to disenfranchise eligible American voters. These findings make one fact unmistakably clear: there is no crisis of non citizen voting in the United States. Passing a bill that burdens lawful voters in New Jersey—and in our county—to address a problem that does not exist is not responsible governance. It is voter suppression. Furthermore, it is clear, based on the history of this bill and it’s recent transformation since the 2024 general election that this bill isn’t about keeping our elections free and fair. They’re about politicians setting the stage to interfere with election results they don’t like. I respectfully urge you to consider the profound harm this Act would inflict on voter participation in New Jersey and in our county, and to stand with the people you represent by voting against the SAVE Act. Protecting the right to vote means making it more accessible, not less. Please vote against this harmful bill.