The House passed its annual defense authorization bill Wednesday afternoon, sending the $1.15 trillion package to the Senate with President Donald Trump’s SAVE America Act attached.
That did not end the fight over the election legislation. It put the issue in the hands of senators who have already struggled to find the 60 votes needed to overcome a Democratic filibuster.
H.R. 8800, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2027, passed 216-212 on Wednesday. The winning side included 209 Republicans, six Democrats, and Independent Rep. Kevin Kiley (CA-03). Seven Republicans voted with 205 Democrats against the bill.
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The six Democrats voting yes were Reps. Henry Cuellar of Texas (TX-28), Don Davis of North Carolina (NC-01), Jared Golden of Maine (ME-02), Vicente Gonzalez of Texas (TX-34), Adam Gray of California (CA-13), and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington (WA-03).
Republican Reps. Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma (R-OK-02), Tim Burchett of Tennessee (TN-02), Eli Crane of Arizona (AZ-02), Harriet Hageman of Wyoming (WY-at-large), Anna Paulina Luna of Florida (FL-13), Thomas Massie (KY-04), and Chip Roy (TX-23) opposed the package.
Republicans spent weeks arguing over how the SAVE America Act would reach the Senate. The legislation requires documentary proof of citizenship to register for federal elections and identification before casting a ballot.
That dispute stopped the House cold on June 30. Fourteen Republicans joined Democrats to defeat a procedural rule 198-224 after conservatives objected that leadership's original plan would leave the election language exposed to removal in the Senate.
Speaker Mike Johnson (LA-04) pushed back hard after the defeat.
"A couple of the members, if you ask them why they voted no, they'll say it was out of frustration from Senate Democrats refusing to do the will of the American people and work on election integrity," Johnson said. "It makes no sense for us to stop our very important progress forward from House Republicans, because some Senate Democrats are refusing to do their job."
Leadership returned with a different procedure. H. Res. 1438, approved Tuesday in a 214-211 vote, instructed the House clerk to append the text of the SAVE America Act, previously passed by the House as S. 1383, to H.R. 8800 during engrossment. The clerk was also authorized to renumber provisions and make technical corrections needed to combine the bills.
The final vote, 216-212, was announced Wednesday afternoon:
🚨 JUST IN: The US House has just PASSED the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) — with the SAVE AMERICA ACT ATTACHED — sending it to the Senate before it heads to President Trump's desk
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 22, 2026
Final vote: 216-212
7 Republican NAYs, while 6 Democrats voted YEA pic.twitter.com/LrNfKVGBZL
The defense bill authorizes pay raises between 5 and 7 percent for military personnel, increases weapons procurement, replenishes depleted stockpiles, and formally renames the Department of Defense as the Department of War.
The Senate problem remains. Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said earlier in 2026 that Republicans lacked the votes to defeat a Democratic filibuster of the SAVE America Act. Trump pressed senators to force Democrats into a talking filibuster, but Thune resisted changing Senate procedure without enough Republican support.
Attaching the legislation to the NDAA gives House Republicans another chance to force the issue. It does not guarantee the election provisions will survive. The Senate can approve its own defense bill without the SAVE America Act and negotiate the differences with the House.
That is the outcome House conservatives were trying to prevent when they sank the June 30 rule. If senators strip out the SAVE America Act language, House Republicans will face the same decision again: accept a final defense bill without Trump’s election legislation or refuse to clear the NDAA until it is restored.
As this is a developing story, RedState will provide updates as warranted.
Editor’s Note: Republicans are fighting for election integrity by requiring proper identification to vote.
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