May 8, 2024

Washington, DC – Today, Jenny Beth Martin, Honorary Chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action, along with, Cleta Mitchell from FAIR Elections Fund and others, joined Speaker Mike Johnson, Senator Mike Lee, and Rep. Chip Roy at a Capitol Hill press conference to support Rep. Roy’s only citizens vote bill, the “Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act” (SAVE Act). The press conference was the launch of the Only Citizens Vote Coalition.

Jenny Beth Martin’s prepared remarks are below. To watch video of her remarks, click here and scroll to the 18:53 mark.

“My name is Jenny Beth Martin, and I am the Honorary Chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action, which represents three million supporters, donors, and grassroots activists.

“I am here today to stand with Speaker Johnson and Congressman Roy and the other members of Congress and leaders of grassroots organizations to declare our support for the SAVE Act.

“And while I’m at it, I’ve been asked by Ken Blackwell, the Chairman of the Conservative Action Project, to declare his support for the bill, too. He couldn’t be with us today.

“Three months ago, we commissioned a national poll, conducted by John Mclaughlin, President Trump’s pollster. His findings were not surprising to those of us who have been working on election integrity at the grassroots level for the last several years. Overwhelming majorities of the American people believe only U.S. citizens should vote, and overwhelming majorities of the American people believe proof of citizenship should be required to register to vote.

“That is exactly what the SAVE Act does – it amends the Motor Voter law to require that States obtain documentary proof of citizenship before they can register someone to vote.

“It’s already illegal for noncitizens to vote. but just because something is illegal doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. If you’re not a citizen, it’s illegal to enter our country without authorization. but that happens multiple millions of times every year.

“We’re trying to get ahead of the curve here. That’s why we support the SAVE Act, and we thank the Speaker and Congressman Roy for their efforts. We’ll do everything we can to get this bill signed into law.”

Today, Townhall ran Ms. Martin’s op-ed, The Best Legislative Solution to Election Integrity Is Here.To read it, click here.

The Only Citizens Vote Coalition consists of more than seventy local, state, and national organizations and citizen leaders who believe that only U.S. citizens should be allowed to vote in any American election — local, state, and federal — and that proof of United States citizenship must be required to register to vote. The organizations are pledging to work together to educate our fellow citizens on the importance of citizen-only voting and ensure the enactment and administration of laws and practices at all levels of government to prevent noncitizen registration and voting. More information about the threat of noncitizen voting can be found on the Coalition’s website: https://www.onlycitizensvotecoalition.com