Democrats block standalone voter ID bill attempt on the Senate floor

Democratic leaders say they don’t oppose voter ID laws, but they blocked a bill Thursday to impose a nationwide requirement.

Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio, attempted to pass a standalone voter ID bill by unanimous consent Thursday night, but Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., blocked the measure in the Senate.

“I’ve heard my Democratic colleagues say they don’t oppose photo ID laws,” Husted said during a floor debate. “I heard Senator Schumer say, ‘Our objection as Democrats is not to photo IDs. I heard Senator Fetterman say he supports a photo ID law.’

“If I could quote him: ‘If the Republican Party wants real reform rather than a sham vote, introduce a clean, stand-alone bill and I’m yes,'” Husted continued, referring to a social media post Fetterman was released Tuesday. “Well, that’s what I’m doing tonight.”

Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., blocked a photo ID bill authored by a Republican late Thursday. (Zach Gibson/Getty Images)

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The measure would have imposed a nationwide voter ID requirement, although 36 states already have similar rules in effect. The Ohio Republican said citizens can use a state-issued driver’s license, a U.S. passport or a valid military or tribal ID to meet that requirement.

Husted, who is seeking the remainder of Vice President J.D. Vance’s Senate term in November, criticized Democrats’ opposition to the voter ID measure in a brief interview Friday with Fox News Digital.

“So apparently they would like people to believe that they are asking for a photo ID, but at the end of the day, they don’t seem to be,” the Ohio Republican said.

Husted’s voter ID strategy came as the Senate is currently in the midst of a multi-day battle over the SAVE America Act, a Trump-backed election bill aimed at preventing non-citizens from voting.

The marathon debate schedule is a move by Republicans to shift blame to Schumer and Democrats for blocking the bill.

But it’s not the same power grab, called filibustering, that President Donald Trump, a cohort of GOP conservatives in the Senate and a fervent right-wing social media campaign have been pushing for the conference to continue.

Indeed, not enough Republican senators supported the move, which would require a near-unified front to successfully execute. And without Democratic support, the bill is doomed to failure at the end of the floor fight.

Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio, blasted Democrats for blocking his voter ID bill Thursday night. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

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A Fox News poll released in September 2025 found that 84% of registered voters said a photo ID should be required to prove their citizenship before voting.

Still, Democrats could obstruct a standalone voter ID bill if Republicans take an up or down vote on the measure in the coming days.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., who particularly opposes the SAVE America Act because of provisions that would restrict mail voting, called on the Senate to pass a standalone voter ID bill.

“Stop turning this into a Christmas list and attacking mail-in voting,” Fetterman wrote Tuesday. “If the GOP wants real reform rather than a show vote, introduce a clean, standalone bill and I’m AYE.”

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said he would vote “yes” if he ran with a voter ID measure. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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A key part of the SAVE America Act is providing proof of citizenship to register to vote, something Democrats have opposed more fiercely than the voter ID provision.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who is shepherding the SAVE America Act in the Senate, questioned why Democrats would say they want one without the other.

“I would like to hear their reasoning, why they would support voter ID but not proof of citizenship,” Lee told Fox News Digital.