SAVE America Act debate: Karl challenges Warner on Virginia voter ID

ABC News host Jonathan Karl challenged Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., on Sunday over whether Virginia requires photo identification to vote as the pair debated Democratic opposition to the SAVE America Act.

Karl began the exchange by asking Warner whether his party should support national photo identification requirements for voter registration and voting, citing broad bipartisan public support for the policy.

“Now, I understand that you and I think every other Democrat opposed this so-called SAVE America Act. And there’s a lot of reasons that you’ve put forward. But let me ask you very narrowly on the issue of photo I.D., requiring photo I.D. to register to vote, to vote. Is this something that Democrats should get behind?” Karl asked on “This Week.”

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Karl then cited statistics on support for the SAVE America Act and Warner pointed to the rules in his home state and began describing his own experience before the ABC News host interrupted him.

“You know what? In Virginia, we have voter I.D. and photo I.D.,” Warner said. 

“That’s actually not the case,” Karl said. “I mean, I’m a Virginia voter. You don’t need to show a photo I.D. in Virginia. There are wide range of things you can show for I.D., and if you don’t show one of those, you can sign an affidavit saying, attesting-” 

“You can sign an affidavit,” Warner said.

Karl said an affidavit was not required.

“Those become ballots that, if you want to contest later, can be contested. But…we have voter I.D. of one form or another,” Warner said.

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Under Virginia law, election officers must ask in-person voters for identification, but acceptable forms include voter confirmation documents, utility bills, bank statements, government checks and paychecks, which do not need to include a photograph. A voter without acceptable identification can sign an ID Confirmation Statement under felony penalties and cast a regular ballot. Voters who provide neither must cast a provisional ballot.

Virginia’s voter registration application required applicants to affirm their citizenship and provide a Social Security number if they have one but does not require photo identification.

When Karl asked whether identification should become a national standard, Warner said he could support government-issued identification if the approved documents were applied uniformly, but argued that the broader legislation would restrict voting.

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“If you can show any photo that is government stamped, would be fine,” Warner said. “If you’re going to have a set of IDs, let’s have it across the board as long as it comes from some official point, but this is not about voter ID. The Save Act is about voter disenfranchisement.”

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A 2025 Pew Research Center survey found that 83% of Americans favored requiring government-issued photo identification to vote, including 71% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents and 95% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents.

The SAVE America Act would require documentary proof of citizenship to register for federal elections, eligible photo identification before voting and states to remove noncitizens from voter rolls. The House initially passed it 218-213 in February, with Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, joining Republicans.