Oslo, Norway—The below opinion piece is offered by U.S. Navy veteran Andy Stites. The author touches on H.R. 22 (and S. 128), voter suppression legislation currently pending in Congress known as the “SAVE Act.” Andy is an Indiana UOCAVA voter, resident of Norway, and Member of the Democrats Abroad Global Veterans and Military Families Caucus.
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In a few moments I’m going to ask that you call and write your two U.S. Senators to strongly urge them to oppose the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act. I know you’ve probably been asked before, so I want to tell you why I’m asking you again. As a veteran.
The “Big Lie” is, sadly, not new to our history. I served four years during the Vietnam-era, (“in country” only a week...never saw a shot fired in anger). Vietnam was also based on a “Big Lie.” In fact, on quite a few of them. Tens of thousands of us went along. Over 50,000 never came home.
Now we are in the midst of more government sponsored “Big Lies.” One of the biggest could soon cost us overseas voters our right to vote. Completely!
At this very moment, the Trump Administration and its MAGA allies in Congress are pushing hard for the passage of the so-called “SAVE Act.” To be clear, this is a bill that rolls back decades of voting rights for our military, their families and overseas-based U.S. citizens. Proponents of the bill are again pushing lies: “illegals are voting,” “mass voter fraud,” “Invasion!”
Meanwhile, opponents of the bill, like myself, argue, “The sky is falling,” but that never seems to happen. Until it does!
On April 10, 2025, the SAVE Act took one giant step closer to becoming law when it passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 220-208. It is now just waiting for Senate approval, then a signature by the President. Everyone’s mission right now needs to include CALLING, WRITING, OR VISITING YOUR SENATORS TO TELL THEM TO VOTE “NO.”
The SAVE Act places unrealistic requirements on the military and overseas voter communities. As but one example, it requires in-person documentary proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote or updating voter registration details. So, if this bill becomes law, an Active Duty Sailor deployed in the Persian Gulf and wanting to register to vote would be unable to do so. A woman in Japan who gets married and legally changes her last name would be unable to do so. A disabled veteran in Brazil who wishes to again use a reliable and trustworthy site like VoteFromAbroad.org to update his or her personal details and simultaneously request a ballot would no longer be able to do so. And the list goes on.
Omaha Beach, Iwo Jima, and so many other moments of bravery, remind us always that the cost of restoring freedom, once lost, is staggering. We owe it to those in harm’s way today and to those who served in the past, to stop that from ever happening. Remember, those of us voting from and those serving overseas, are most at risk.
But the threat to our vote is also coming from the states. Remember, they control most of our voting rights, and nearly half have introduced, or are preparing right now, to pass their own “mini” SAVE Act voter suppression bills.
If these bills become state law, they would invalidate our ballots if they arrive at the local election authority after Election Day. They would also intimidate some of our greatest patriots, those selfless local election workers, who help us with often complex voting to make sure each of our votes is counted. Under such proposals, anyone could file a private lawsuit, no matter how frivolous, to further harass these dedicated public servants. They would also face criminal penalties.
We U.S. citizens must not be distracted by the fire hose of manufactured chaos coming out of the White House. Don’t fall for MAGA’s “Flooding the zone.”
We and our family and friends in the states must contact our state legislators and demand that they protect us and not support bills that offer fake solutions to non-existent problems!
Democrats Abroad has done a fine job helping educate us. Now it's up to us. Let’s act now!
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U.S. citizens living abroad, both civilian and military, are highly encouraged to check your voter registration status and request your ballot for any upcoming elections in your home voting state that you are eligible to vote in.
The VMF Caucus, proudly consisting of veterans, military family members, and strong allies of veterans and military family causes, has a membership of approximately 1,300 members located in dozens of countries.
For questions pertaining to this statement, please reach out to