Georgia Republican Representative Rich McCormick faced heavy criticism and boos during a town hall meeting with his constituents for sponsoring the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which could make it more difficult for married women who took their husband's last name to vote.
The bill, reintroduced this legislative session by Republican Representative Chip Roy of Texas, aims to amend the National Voter Registration Act by requiring eligible voters to show documentary proof of U.S. citizenship when registering for federal elections, a move driven by unproven claims of widespread noncitizen voting.
However, voting rights advocates and legal experts warn that the measure could significantly limit voting access for women and millions of other Americans by creating additional barriers to proving their eligibility to vote.
Under the SAVE Act, acceptable proof of citizenship includes an ID compliant with the 2005 REAL ID Act, a valid U.S. passport paired with a certified birth certificate and government-issued photo ID, an extract from a U.S. hospital birth record, a final adoption decree, or an American Indian Card, among other documents.
One specific challenge with the SAVE Act is that it complicates voting for individuals whose legal name does not match their birth certificate—often married women who have adopted their spouse’s last name. The bill does not list marriage certificates or name-change documents among its accepted forms of citizenship proof, creating an additional obstacle.
According to a report from the Center for American Progress (CAP), roughly 69 million voting-age women who changed their last name after marriage would face difficulties voting under the SAVE Act.
With this in mind, hundreds of critics appeared at an in-person constituent town hall at Roswell City Council hosted by McCormick and McCormick was called out by one woman who demanded he "look me in the eye and tell me why you're trying to take away my right to vote."
She added:
"Every news outlet that has reported on this are saying it's going to make it difficult for any woman with a married last name to vote. It is a voter suppression law that you signed on as a sponsor and I already know you're scared for me to vote."
Rich defended the measure, saying voting using documentary proof is a "bipartisan issue" but he was cut off:
"I hear what you're saying but the SAVE Act that you are sponsoring requires a paper ballot. It requires a paper birth certificate so you can show up in person. It takes away everything digital that you're talking about. It requires in-person voter registration with a birth certificate that matches your current last name."
"It is voter suppression. It is not a bipartisan solution."
The woman's remarks were cheered by those in attendance and McCormick was booed in response. But he pushed back, accusing his critics of "yelling" and "not having a discussion" about the legislation and accused the audience of not addressing the matter in "good faith."
He insisted he "didn't have to come here and my staff didn't have to come here," to which one voter yelled out:
"It's your job!"
You can watch what happened in the video below.
@linzdefranco Representative McCormick claims he didnt know that a bill he sponsored would make it harder for married women to vote. #ga7 #richmccormicktownhall
McCormick was swiftly called out.
Many of those who attended the town hall with McCormick went to condemn the actions of President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, who with his DOGE initiative has slashed vital government programs and shuttered entire organizations, including USAID, the world's leading humanitarian agency.
The crowd applauded when one resident, commenting on Trump's moves to consolidate executive power, said that “it’s clear from all the writings of our Founding Fathers that our great republic was never meant to be ruled by a dictator or a king.”
The voter said she experienced "shock and pure horror when I woke up to find that our president had given himself unprecedented executive powers and then in a few days named himself King to his followers," referring to a recent White House post declaring "LONG LIVE THE KING" after the Trump administration struck down a congestion pricing initiative in New York.
McCormick was booed again when he suggested that Republicans had the same concerns when former President Joe Biden was in office, ignoring the voter's concern about what "congressmen are going to do to reign in the megalomaniac in the White House."
