Gov. Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 991 at The Villages on Wednesday, enacting Florida’s version of the federal SAVE Act and expanding the state’s election integrity reforms. The legislation requires verification of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote and positions Florida as a national model amid ongoing debates over birthright citizenship at the federal level.
“Our constitution in the State of Florida says only American citizens are allowed to vote in our elections, and so we need to make sure the law reflects that,” DeSantis said during the signing ceremony. The governor traced Florida’s election history back to the 2000 presidential recount, when the state became synonymous with electoral chaos, and highlighted vulnerabilities exposed during the 2018 midterms.
“If you have a landslide, you can still have irregularities - people just don’t fixate on it as much,” DeSantis said, recalling how he won on election night in 2018 only to watch his margin shrink as additional votes arrived from Broward and Palm Beach counties. “This was razor thin.” The governor contrasted that experience with Florida’s performance in 2022, when the state tabulated results for the entire state within hours of polls closing.
“All you have to do is watch these elections and see how Florida performs,” DeSantis said. “We’ve become the envy of the nation. Who would have thought that 25 years ago?” The governor emphasized how Florida has transformed from a state known for election problems to one that other states look to as a model for efficient vote counting and election administration.
House Bill 991 mandates paper ballots for all voting to allow for verifiable recounts and prohibits student IDs as valid voter identification in favor of government-issued IDs proving Florida residency. The legislation strengthens penalties for election crimes, particularly petition fraud, addressing concerns about fraudulent signature gathering that have plagued ballot initiatives in recent years.
The bill requires candidates to disclose any dual citizenship and attest under oath that they meet all constitutional requirements for office. This provision adds a new layer of transparency for candidates seeking elected positions in Florida, ensuring voters have complete information about their representatives’ citizenship status and eligibility.
New and returning congressional candidates must disclose stock trading activity while serving in office under the legislation. This financial transparency requirement addresses growing concerns about potential conflicts of interest among elected officials who trade stocks while having access to information that could affect market performance.
DeSantis noted that Florida’s existing laws already provide strong election security measures, but HB 991 builds on that foundation with additional safeguards. The signing at The Villages, a major retirement community in central Florida, underscored the administration’s focus on ensuring election integrity for all Florida voters, particularly in communities with high voter participation rates.