Administration

Leavitt defends SAVE America Act push at Turning Point event with Erika Kirk

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by Sophie Brams - 04/02/26 10:44 PM ET

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by Sophie Brams - 04/02/26 10:44 PM ET

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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday defended the SAVE America Act after a George Washington University student challenged whether the proposal was “worth” risking the possible disenfranchisement of millions of Americans to stop “a few hundred cases of voter fraud.”

Republicans are facing pressure from President Trump to pass the measure, which would require Americans to show photo ID when voting in federal elections and provide proof of U.S. citizenship to register, as the midterm elections are already underway in states across the country.

Supporters say the bill is needed to prevent noncitizens from voting, while opponents argue it would make voting harder for Americans who either do not have passports or birth certificates readily available or whose married name no longer matches those documents.

The debate came on full display during a Turning Point USA event in Washington on Thursday, when a student posed the question to Leavitt, who was sharing the stage with Erika Kirk, Turning Point’s CEO and the widow of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

“Voter fraud is incredibly rare,” the student said, citing data from the Heritage Foundation, which has documented 1,620 proven instances of voter fraud since 1982 out of hundreds of millions of ballots cast.

The student also cited data from the Brennan Center for Justice, which found that roughly 21 million Americans do not have proof of citizenship readily available.

“So my question to you is, is it worth it to risk millions of Americans from voting in order to prevent a few hundred cases of voter fraud?” he asked, to a mix of applause and boos from the crowd.

“No need to boo. It’s an honest question,” Leavitt responded, before expressing skepticism about the accuracy of the data. “There is certainly much more, I believe, voter fraud in this country, and I’m sure those statistics back it up, than what you cited with one survey.”

“And why are you okay with any voter fraud in the United States of America?” she added.

Leavitt called it “absolutely absurd” that the U.S. does not require voter ID for national elections, and said it was “frankly insulting” to suggest the bill would prevent anyone from voting.

“It’s a common-sense piece of legislation, and Democrats would be wise to get on board with this, because the only people in the world, except for maybe this gentleman who asked the question, seem to be politicians in this city who don’t want voter ID and proof of citizenship in American elections,” she said.

The SAVE America Act passed the House in February, but has stalled in the Senate amid Democratic opposition. Debate on the bill is expected to resume when senators return from Easter recess.

Trump has called the legislation his top legislative priority, floating the idea of issuing an executive order to implement nationwide voter ID if Congress fails to pass it.

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