Trump: Not passing SAVE America Act ‘devastating’ for GOP in midterms

By Ajani Stella

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President Donald Trump talks to reporters before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

President Donald Trump blamed Republicans’ resounding midterm defeat on the GOP-controlled U.S. Senate’s failure to pass the SAVE America Act, likely the most anti-voting bill in recent American history.

The bill repeatedly passed the House, but failed in the Senate, where Republicans simply lacked the votes to overcome Democratic opposition. Despite it having no shot at success, Trump called SAVE his “No. 1 priority” and demanded the GOP end the filibuster to pass it.

“The Republican Senate can no longer be the place ‘where things are sent to die.’ Not passing THE SAVE AMERICA ACT (Voter I.D., Proof of Citizenship), sent up five times by the House, was devastating to the Republican Party in the Midterms,” Trump wrote in a Thursday morning social media post. “Not terminating the Filibuster, and getting EVERYTHING even ‘dreamt’ of, approved, when the Dems will definitely do so, will go down as being one of the greatest mistakes in the Political History of America. So sad!!!”

Since Democrats swept the midterms, winning majorities in both the House and Senate, Trump has seemingly struggled to make sense of the loss. He initially said he would accept the results, before pivoting to question whether the election was “honest” and boost election conspiracy theories online.  

Now, he’s blaming the SAVE America Act’s failure.

If it had been enacted, SAVE would have disenfranchised millions of eligible voters by requiring them to show documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote and to provide photo ID when they cast ballots. It would also have banned no-excuse mail voting, gender-affirming care for minors, and transgender athletes in women’s sports.

The U.S. House of Representatives approved the bill multiple times, but it repeatedly died in the Senate. 

Trump has long pushed conspiracy theories that illegal noncitizen voting is widespread in U.S. elections, necessitating new anti-voting legislation. In reality, illegal noncitizen voting rarely happens and never in large enough numbers to affect the outcome of a race.