Alex Padilla U.S. Senator for California

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and California’s former Secretary of State, convened a Rules Committee Democrats spotlight hearing titled “Protecting the Future of American Democracy: An Examination of Trump and Partisan Attacks on Voting and Elections.” Padilla’s opening remarks at the forum focused on Congressional Republicans’ Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act that recently passed the House of Representatives and Trump’s illegal anti-voter executive order, both of which threaten to disenfranchise millions of eligible American citizens.

Padilla underscored Republican efforts to make it harder for eligible American citizens to vote through the SAVE Act, emphasizing that it is already a crime for noncitizens to vote, and pointed out that despite Republicans’ false claims, voter fraud is extremely rare.

• “As we convene here today, across the country, in state legislatures, as well as in the Oval Office, and sadly, even here in the United States Congress, there are extreme Republicans who are actively working to make it harder for eligible Americans to register to vote and to cast their ballot in elections.”

• “We cannot sit back and watch as our democracy is attacked — we owe it to the American people who have elected us to serve on their behalf: so we have to speak up. And that starts with recognizing the dangers at our doorstep.”

• “Currently pending before the Senate is the SAVE Act — a conspiracy theory bill that scapegoats immigrants to justify new barriers to voter registration. Not only is it wrong, it’s un-American. And it’s based on a shameless lie — the same ‘Big Lie’ that Donald Trump uses to claim that he won the 2020 election, which of course, he did not. He lost.”

Padilla emphasized that the SAVE Act will cause the most harm to American citizens and highlighted the risks the bill poses to election workers who are already facing growing threats.

• “As you’ll hear today, it’s American citizens who will be most impacted by the SAVE Act, from first time voters and married women to servicemembers and rural voters.”

• “To make matters worse, at a time of rising threats and harassment to poll workers and election officials across the country, the SAVE Act actually threatens election workers with up to five years of prison time for registering someone without the correct documents, regardless of if they’re an American citizen.”

Padilla concluded his opening remarks by criticizing President Trump’s support for these harmful restrictions through his executive order and welcoming election administrators and other Americans dealing with the direct impacts of these anti-voter policies.

• “Now despite the extreme policy proposals — or rather, because of them — Donald Trump is all in. He’s not even waiting for Congress to act. In fact, earlier this year, he signed an executive order to try to do all this and more unilaterally. That includes trying to upend the voting system standards and changing the deadline states can accept vote-by-mail ballots.”

• “60 years since the Voting Rights Act, it’s outrageous that these battles rage on. Yet, in the year 2025, here we are, and that’s what Americans are up against.”

• “So today, we want America to hear from the election administrators who are on the frontlines, along with Americans who are impacted by — and standing up to — these radical policies.”

Video of Senator Padilla’s remarks is available to watch here and be downloaded here.

Members heard from election officials and voter advocates regarding ongoing attacks on voter registration and election integrity during the forum. The panel included Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) CEO Juan Proaño, League of Women Voters CEO Celina Stewart, and Nicole Meek, an impacted voter as a member of a military family.

This spotlight hearing kicks off a series of Rules Committee Democrats’ forums focused on protecting the future of America’s elections. The series will underscore the dangers of the Trump Administration’s unprecedented attacks on election security, integrity, and funding required to smoothly administer elections and protect American democracy.

Senator Padilla has led the charge opposing President Trump and Republicans’ reckless attempts to restrict the right to vote. As President Trump marked 100 disastrous days in office, he recently led his Democratic colleagues on the Senate floor to speak out against the SAVE Act and attacks on election integrity. Last month, Padilla warned Secretaries of State, Lieutenant Governors, and Chief Election Officials across the country of the devastating potential impacts of Republicans’ SAVE Act, concerns that have been echoed by top election officials across the country. He also led a letter yesterday sounding the alarm on the devastating impacts of Trump’s anti-voter “election integrity” executive order and the SAVE Act on Native American voting rights.

Additionally, Padilla led 11 Senators in introducing the Defending America’s Future Elections Act to repeal Trump’s illegal anti-voter executive order and prevent the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing sensitive voter registration data and state records. Padilla previously led 14 Democratic Senators in calling on Trump to revoke his illegal anti-voter executive order and issued a statement slamming the order when it was announced.

A full transcript of Senator Padilla’s opening remarks, as delivered, is available below:

Good afternoon, everybody, and thank you for joining us here today for this spotlight hearing that we’ve entitled “Protecting the Future of American Democracy: An Examination of Trump and Partisan Attacks on Voting and Elections.”

I wanted to begin by thanking the witnesses who are participating today for joining us. I know that many of you have traveled from quite a distance, from different parts of the country to be here today and to share your experiences and reflect on the spectrum of challenges that both voters and election administrators are having to navigate in the year 2025.

I hope today we’re able to discuss not only the challenges that we’re facing, but also offer some solutions that can help us better protect the right to vote.

I also want to begin by saying to my colleagues as they join us later today that as the new Ranking Member of the Senate Rules Committee — and as former California Secretary of State — that this is a role that I don’t take lightly.

Just as each successive generation of Americans has a role to play in preserving and protecting our democracy, each Senate Rules Committee has a duty to carry the baton as well, so that democracy truly does endure for the next generation.

As Ranking Member of the Committee, I plan to do my part.

So it’s important that we recognize the moment that we find ourselves in.

As we convene here today, across the country, in state legislatures, as well as in the Oval Office, and sadly, even here in the United States Congress, there are extreme Republicans who are actively working to make it harder for eligible Americans to register to vote and to cast their ballot in elections.

And we cannot sit back and watch as our democracy is attacked — we owe it to the American people who have elected us to serve on their behalf:

So we have to speak up.

And that starts with recognizing the dangers at our doorstep.

Currently pending before the Senate is the SAVE Act — a conspiracy theory bill that scapegoats immigrants to justify new barriers to voter registration.

Not only is it wrong, it’s un-American.

And it’s based on a shameless lie — the same “Big Lie” that Donald Trump uses to claim that he won the 2020 election, which of course, he did not. He lost.

As California’s former chief elections officer, I have firsthand experience administering elections in the most populous and most diverse state in the nation.

And I can tell you personally: for all the disinformation and misinformation and fearmongering coming from Republicans — the truth of the matter is it is already a crime for noncitizens to vote.

And it’s also extremely, extremely rare.

As you’ll hear today, it’s American citizens who will be most impacted by the SAVE Act, from first-time voters and married women to servicemembers and rural voters.

And to make matters worse, at a time of rising threats and harassment to poll workers and election officials across the country, the SAVE Act actually threatens election workers with up to five years of prison time for registering someone without the correct documents, regardless of if they’re an American citizen.

Now despite the extreme policy proposals — or rather, because of them — Donald Trump is all in. He’s not even waiting for Congress to act.

In fact, earlier this year, he signed an executive order to try to do all this and more unilaterally.

That includes trying to upend the voting system standards and changing the deadline states can accept vote-by-mail ballots.

60 years since the Voting Rights Act, it’s outrageous that these battles rage on.

Yet, in the year 2025, here we are, and that’s what Americans are up against.

So today, we want America to hear from the election administrators who are on the frontlines, along with Americans who are impacted by — and standing up to — these radical policies.

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