Mike Lee Says ‘Zombie Filibuster’ Is Stalling Voter ID Bill—Here’s What That Means

Conservatives are calling on Senate Republicans to end the “zombie filibuster” to overcome Democrat opposition to the SAVE America Act, legislation that would mandate voter ID and proof of citizenship.

President Donald Trump threw his full support behind the bill in recent days, arguing that America’s elections are “rigged, stolen, and a laughingstock.”

“The SAVE [America] Act is very important,” Trump told reporters Friday. “Everybody wants it. Even with Democrats, it’s polling at 82%. With Republicans, it polls at 99%, so we’re going to be trying very hard.”

The legislation requires proof of citizenship to register to vote and voter ID at polling places. Sponsored by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, an earlier version of the bill has twice passed the House on a bipartisan basis but has been blocked by Senate Democrats.

What the SAVE America Act Would Do

“This is common-sense legislation,” Roy said in a video message posted on X. “This is an issue that polls at something like 80%, regardless of your race, regardless of your background. This is common-sense stuff that we think we should move.”

Roy announced that Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise will bring the bill to the House floor in the coming days.

The real battle, however, lies in the narrowly divided Senate, where Republicans hold a slim majority but would still need 60 votes under the chamber’s rules.

“The problem is Chuck Schumer and the Democrats have been blocking it,” Roy said. “So now we’re calling on Leader [John] Thune to change this and to force what we call a talking filibuster so that we can force a vote on the Senate floor.”

Lee has been making the case for reviving the traditional talking filibuster, which would require senators to hold the floor and debate rather than simply invoking a procedural 60-vote threshold.

“In the coming days, there will be a lot of chatter about the talking filibuster,” Lee said. “Some are going to say that it’s getting rid of the filibuster, that it’s tantamount to nuking the filibuster, and that we can’t get rid of Senate tradition. Well, keep in mind what we’ve got right now isn’t actually a filibuster. It’s the zombie filibuster. It’s the evil twin brother, the evil dark side manifestation of the real filibuster.”

Lee argued that the traditional filibuster protects each senator’s right to debate, while the current system “allows them to have the benefits of the filibuster without actually having to speak.”

“Got to make them speak,” Lee added.

The renewed push for the SAVE America Act comes as conservatives seek to enact election integrity reforms with broad public support. In recent days, more Senate Republicans have signed on as cosponsors; as of Friday, the bill had 34.

Conservatives Push for Senate Action

Grassroots leaders such as Heritage Action’s Tiffany Justice and conservative organizer Scott Pressler have also ramped up pressure on the Senate to break the logjam and pass the bill.

“Promise you that I will not rest until we pass the SAVE America Act,” Presler wrote on X.

Rob Bluey, president and executive editor of The Daily Signal, emphasized the importance of the legislation during multiple television appearances this week.

Asked by “Meet the Press” host Kristen Welker about Trump’s comments on nationalizing elections, Bluey noted that Democrats attempted just a few years ago to pass the For the People Act, which would have weakened state election laws.

“Depending on whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat and your candidate wins or loses, you seem to doubt the outcome of the election,” Bluey said on NBC News. “Democrats have done it in the past. [Former Speaker] Nancy Pelosi wanted to nationalize things just a few years ago. Republicans successfully pushed back on that.”

Bluey added: “I would prefer to see the president pivot to the SAVE America Act … because that seems to be an issue where over 80% of Americans are in support of some form of voter ID.”

Widespread Support for Voter ID

In a video clip that has gone viral, CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten said voter ID enjoys widespread support across political and demographic groups, with 83% backing it—the highest level ever recorded.

In a separate appearance on CNN, Bluey told host Audie Cornish that Republicans would be wise to focus on election integrity.

“Do you want to spend time talking about this for the next six months?” Cornish asked.

“I think election integrity is critically important to talk about,” Bluey replied.

CNN also asked Bluey about Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s presence at an FBI raid of election offices in Fulton County, Georgia, as investigators sought documents related to the 2020 election.

Bluey cited recent news that Fulton County acknowledged that 315,000 ballots from the 2020 election were not properly certified. The 2020 presidential race in Georgia was decided by 11,779 votes.

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