Vote.org Statement on Florida HB 991: 872,000 Voters at Risk of Disenfranchisement

WASHINGTON, DC — Vote.org today responded to the Florida Legislature’s passage of HB 991, a bill that would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and restrict the forms of identification accepted at the polls. The bill now heads to Governor Ron DeSantis, who is expected to sign it into law.

Even the bill’s own sponsor admits that approximately 872,000 Floridians do not currently have identification that meets the law’s new standards. Under HB 991, student IDs and retirement community IDs would no longer be accepted as valid voter identification, removing options that Floridians have relied upon since 2006. Obtaining a new compliant driver’s license can cost up to $50, a barrier that falls hardest on low-income voters.

Senior citizens who registered to vote decades ago, students without a state-issued ID, and women who have changed their names through marriage or divorce face particular challenges under the new requirements. Women whose legal name differs from the name on their birth certificate must provide additional documentation to prove their identity, creating hurdles that do not apply equally to all voters.

It is already illegal for noncitizens to vote in Florida. In 2025, the state’s own Office of Election Crimes and Security identified 198 likely noncitizens on a voter roll of more than 13 million. HB 991 imposes sweeping new burdens on hundreds of thousands of eligible citizens in response to a problem the state itself has documented as vanishingly rare.

“Every eligible voter deserves a clear and accessible path to the ballot. HB 991 does not strengthen Florida’s elections. It makes participation harder for hundreds of thousands of Floridians who have every right to vote. Vote.org will continue to provide Florida voters with the resources, information, and support they need to make their voices heard.”

— Andrea Hailey, CEO, Vote.org

Vote.org urges all Florida voters to check their registration status and sign up for Election Reminders.

About Vote.org

Vote.org is the largest nonpartisan voter registration and get-out-the-vote technology platform in the United States. Its mission is to use technology to simplify political participation for every eligible voter, with a particular focus on underserved communities.