Congress moves to strip voting power from millions of citizens
H.R. 4798 — Making American Elections Great Again Act · Filed by Marjorie Greene (R-GA) · 4 cosponsors · Introduced Jul 29, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill makes three major changes to federal elections: (1) it shifts the decennial census from every 10 years to every 5 years, starting immediately, and adds a mid-decade census 5 years after each main census; (2) it counts only U.S. citizens in the census for apportioning House seats among states, excluding non-citizens from the population count used to determine representation; and (3) it requires all voters in federal elections to present government photo ID plus proof of U.S. citizenship (such as a passport, birth certificate, or naturalization papers) to cast a ballot, with violations carrying criminal penalties. The citizenship requirement takes effect in November 2026.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core mechanism is to erect new voting barriers (dual ID/citizenship documentation) and to shift House apportionment away from total population toward citizen-only counts, both of which reduce electoral power in states with larger immigrant populations. The census timing change appears designed to create administrative disruption and cost.
- The mid-decade census (Section 2(2)) is substantively unrelated to the bill's stated voting/apportionment purpose and appears designed to increase census costs and administrative burden without clear policy justification.
What the text implies
- Apportionment based on citizen-only counts will shift House seats away from states with larger immigrant populations (California, Texas, Florida, New York) toward states with lower immigration, effectively redistributing political power without a change in total population or voting eligibility.
- The dual-documentation requirement (photo ID + citizenship proof) will disproportionately suppress turnout among elderly citizens (who may lack birth certificates), naturalized citizens (whose documents may be in foreign languages or stored overseas), and poor citizens (who cannot afford to obtain certified copies of birth certificates, which cost $10–$50 per state).
The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
document-verification service providers; election administration contractors; census contractors (increased frequency = increased contracts)