A Letter to Those Who’ve Changed Their Names Since Birth: Secure Your Vote

April 17, 2025

Dear Rosies,

We're writing today with care and respect because many of you belong to the largest—and perhaps most overlooked—group at risk of being turned away at the polls under recently passed legislation: women who have changed their names after marriage.

The recently passed SAVE Act (H.R. 22) would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship for all new voter registrations. This means that if your current legal name no longer matches your birth certificate—because of marriage, divorce, or a personal name change—you will need to provide additional documents to verify your identity and your eligibility to vote. These could include a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court-issued name change order.

This matters to women, especially older women. Over 90% of women married before the year 2000 changed their names after marriage. While that number has dropped slightly in younger generations—closer to 70% today—the older a woman is, the more likely she is to have changed her name, and the less likely she is to have digital or accessible documentation of that change.

In other words: the new law disproportionately impacts women—and especially older women, who followed longstanding societal norms. not knowing that their name change could one day complicate their ability to vote.

If you have changed your name, or know someone who has, let’s make sure no name change—no matter how long ago or how many times over—gets in the way of your voice being heard at the polls.

It’s best to address it now:

• Check your voter registration status.

• Review your ID and citizenship documents—do the names match?

• If they don’t, locate your name change documents (marriage license, divorce papers, etc.), or order new ones.

• Contact your local election office to learn what’s required in your state.

If you don’t have those documents, start the process now. You may need to request certified copies from the courts or vital records offices. This can take time, and it’s better to be ready.

This is a voting issue, a visibility issue, a dignity issue, and an inclusion issue- for all who changed their name somewhere along the way- for marriage, or for preference.

With admiration for your presence and your power,

Education at Rosebud Woman