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A Democratic lawmaker created an online firestorm after appearing to inadvertently make the case for stricter voter ID requirements while criticizing a Trump-backed election bill.
Rep. Shomari Figures, D-Ala., repeatedly said Monday that Democrats were not against voter identification at the ballot box as he discussed his opposition to the SAVE America Act at a town hall with constituents. The Alabama Democrat, however, appeared to imply that the town hall attendees might have a problem with it.
“I’m of a different era, I’m of a different generation. I probably feel a little bit differently about it,” Figures, 40, told a seemingly older crowd. “But watch this: how many people in here do not have an ID?”
No one’s hand went up.
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After a noticeable pause, Figures appeared to nod in agreement.
“Everybody has an ID, right?” Figures said, adding that he believed “20, 30, 40 years ago, it was a lot different.”
A shortened clip of the exchange posted to social media sparked backlash among conservatives, who said the video proved that a majority of Americans would have no issue complying with photo ID requirements.
“Democrat Rep. Figures’ rhetoric on Voter ID absolutely backfires when every single person he’s talking to has an ID,” David McIntosh, president of the conservative Club for Growth, wrote on social media.
“OOPS. Rep. Shomari Figures (D) just accidentally OBLITERATED his Party’s own narrative that people don’t have IDs to vote,” the viral Libs of TikTok account added.
Figures disputed that he expected someone in the audience not to have an ID, in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“If you listen to the entire exchange, which they intentionally cut short, you will clearly see that I was making the point that these days everyone has an ID,” Figures said, referring to viral clips of a shortened exchange that circulated on social media.
“I asked the audience a rhetorical question: ‘How many people here do not have an ID?'” he continued. “I fully expected no one to raise their hand.”
The exchange comes as top Democrats in Washington have long opposed photo ID rules for voting, often likening such restrictions to Jim Crow laws meant to keep minority Americans disenfranchised.
A GOP push to add a photo ID requirement as an amendment to the SAVE America Act was defeated by Democrats in March, despite Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer saying Democrats support showing identification at the polling booth.
But Democratic lawmakers’ opposition to voter ID rules appears to be increasingly out of step with voters. More than seven in 10 Democratic voters and 76% of Black voters support showing government-issued photo ID to vote, according to a 2025 Pew Research Center poll.
Photo ID requirements are already widespread, with 36 states, including Alabama, mandating identification when voting. Supporters note there has been no observed effect on turnout.
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Figures said his opposition to the SAVE America Act revolves around its proof of citizenship requirement to vote in federal elections. Eligible documents include a U.S. passport or birth certificate, which Figures argues is too stringent.
Later in the town hall, the Alabama Democrat asked the crowd if everyone had easy access to their birth certificate or a passport. When not everyone raised their hand, he said, “There’s the problem.”
“My point is that if a driver’s license is the most common form of ID that the overwhelming majority of people have, then it should be enough to allow people to vote,” Figures told Fox News Digital. “The bottom line is that the SAVE Act is a bill that makes it harder for people to vote by requiring them to obtain additional forms of identification.”
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Proponents of the SAVE America Act note that a majority of Americans have recently had to show a birth certificate or passport to the government to receive a REAL ID. They also point out that some states issue driver’s licenses to noncitizens, though those individuals are explicitly barred from voting in federal elections.
Figures was among nearly all Democrats who voted against the SAVE America Act when it passed the House, and the measure has since stalled in the Senate.
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The upper chamber, however, is expected to continue debating the legislation in April amid a pressure campaign from Trump to advance the measure to his desk.
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