The SAVE America Act Is a Threat to Democracy
Hadar Susskind — March 18, 2026
Over the years, our movement has had to stand up at key moments when the future of democracy, here and in Israel, felt threatened. Passage of the SAVE America Act is one of those moments. It is an attack on the very core of American democracy – the right to vote.
Despite being framed as a simple “voter ID” measure, this bill goes much further. It requires millions of Americans to present specific citizenship documents, in person, just to register to vote or to update their voter registration. For many people, that means taking time off work, traveling long distances, or navigating bureaucratic hurdles that simply shouldn’t stand between a citizen and their right to vote. It also would effectively eliminate the ability to vote by mail.
Who is most impacted? Women, trans and nonbinary Americans, and naturalized citizens – voters that traditionally lean Democratic.
Clearly, this is not about election security. It is about restricting access to the ballot. As President Trump has said, passing this bill would “guarantee the midterms.” When political leaders openly champion a policy because it will shape electoral outcomes in their favor, democracy itself is at stake.
New Jewish Narrative is joining the fight against the SAVE America Act because it is part of the same struggle we’ve been engaged in all along in both Israel and the US: the defense of democratic values, pluralism, and equality.
It is a continuation of our opposition to the Nation State Law in Israel and our leadership of the pushback in the US against Prime Minister Netanyahu’s judicial coup. It builds on our efforts to challenge the Trump administration’s arrests of students who had the audacity to say things that the president doesn't agree with. And it is an extension of our fight against the administration’s weaponization of antisemitism – their twisting it into a tool to silence dissent and punish critics of Israeli government policy.
Without free and fair elections, without the ability for people to participate fully and equally, the entire system becomes skewed. Voices are silenced. Power becomes entrenched. And democracy is eroded.
In the days and weeks ahead, we will be pushing hard to stop this legislation, working on Capitol Hill, mobilizing our community, and partnering with allies to make clear that efforts to undo democracy in America will not go unanswered.
This moment matters, and we are meeting it.
Hadar Susskind is the president and CEO of New Jewish Narrative.
