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Dem amendment to SAVE America Act targets Trump’s politically motivated election cases

March 19, 2026

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) speaking to reporters near the Senate Subway at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Michael Brochstein/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)

As Senate Republicans continue pushing the SAVE America Act on the floor, Democrats introduced a new amendment aimed at making it harder for the Trump Justice Department to bring politically motivated election cases — like the one it’s currently pursuing in Fulton County, Georgia.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) filed an amendment Thursday that would require that only a Senate-confirmed U.S. attorney in the district where an alleged violation occurs can bring and direct election-related cases.

The idea behind the amendment was recently outlined in a column by Democracy Docket founder Marc Elias.

Specifically, the amendment states that arrest warrants and search warrants “may only be requested by a United States attorney who is confirmed by the Senate and who is appointed to the judicial district in which the alleged violation took place.”

In plain terms, the proposal would prevent federal prosecutors from pursuing election cases outside their own districts — a practice voting rights advocates warn could be used to target voters or election officials for political reasons.

If a district does not yet have a Senate-confirmed U.S. attorney, the authority would temporarily fall to the longest-serving assistant U.S. attorney in that district.

The concerns Democrats are raising are not hypothetical.

Earlier this year, a federal investigation tied to the 2020 election in Fulton County — including an FBI raid — was overseen by a U.S. attorney based in Missouri who had been granted broader authority by DOJ to pursue election-related cases beyond his home district.

The amendment comes as Democrats and voting rights advocates warn that the SAVE America Act — a sweeping bill that would impose strict proof-of-citizenship and photo ID to vote, among other restrictions — could expand the federal government’s role in elections.

In floating the idea, Elias, the Democracy Docket founder, warned that federal officials could try to bypass local prosecutors and bring election-related cases in more politically favorable jurisdictions.

Elias argued that requiring cases to be handled by Senate-confirmed U.S. attorneys in the district where the alleged conduct occurred would help prevent the misuse of federal law enforcement powers in elections.

Despite the heated debate, the SAVE America Act faces long odds. Even if any amendment advances, Senate procedural hurdles and unified Democratic opposition make it unlikely for the bill itself to become law.

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Friday, March 20, 2026