What Langworthy's Hiding in the "Stop Insider Trading Act"

Nick Langworthy (R-NY23) has spent recent weeks positioning himself as a clean-government reformer on congressional stock trading. What Langworthy isn't talking about is the voter ID mandate hidden in the same bill. In his July 26, 2026 Weekly Update from Washington, he wrote:

"One of the biggest complaints I hear from people across Western New York and the Southern Tier is that they don't trust Washington to put their interests first. Frankly, I understand why." — Rep. Nick Langworthy, Weekly Update from Washington, July 26, 2026

He went on to attack "Members of Congress buying and selling millions of dollars' worth of individual stocks while having access to information unavailable to the public."

In a Facebook video promoting the same bill, Langworthy put it even more plainly:

"I'm not a millionaire, and I don't trade stocks. This is about public service, not cashing in on insider tips. Members shouldn't run from a briefing to their broker. I'm fighting to ban congressional stock trading because it's dead wrong." — Rep. Nick Langworthy, Facebook video, July 21, 2026

Langworthy co-sponsored that bill, the Stop Insider Trading Act (H.R. 7008), joining as a cosponsor on January 13, 2026, one day after Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI) introduced it. What Langworthy's newsletter and his video don't mention is what else is in the bill.

Langworthy's Voter ID Mandate, Buried in Section 3

Titled "Requiring Voters to Provide Photo Identification," Section 3 amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to add a new federal mandate:

"Notwithstanding any other provision of law...the appropriate State or local election official may not provide a ballot for an election for Federal office to an individual who desires to vote in person unless the individual presents to the official a valid physical photo identification." — H.R. 7008, Section 3

The bill defines acceptable ID as:

"(1) A valid State-issued motor vehicle driver's license that includes a photo of the individual and an expiration date. (2) A valid State-issued identification card that includes a photo of the individual and an expiration date issued by a State motor vehicle authority. (3) A valid United States passport..." — H.R. 7008, Section 3

The list continues with military and tribal ID. A student or college ID does not qualify — a stricter standard than some states, including Wisconsin, the home state of the bill's own sponsor, apply under their own voter ID laws.

Langworthy's bill splits cleanly in two: Sections 1 and 2 are the stock-trading restrictions, and Section 3 is Langworthy's voter ID mandate. One bill, one document, one vote: H.R. 7008 passed the House 232-198, with every Democrat voting "NO." Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) publicly objected to including Voter ID in a bill to ostensibly ban insider trading:

"Republicans say we are voting on an 'insider trading' bill, but have snuck in massive SAVE Act-style voter suppression measures to it." — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), July 21, 2026

Langworthy Had the Chance to Strip Out Voter ID. He Voted Not To.

Langworthy sits on the House Rules Committee, the committee that decided how this bill would reach the floor. Democratic members offered amendments there to strip the bill down to stock-trading provisions only, and separately to swap in looser voter ID language — both defeated. When offered the chance to strip out the voter ID provisions of this bill, Langworthy voted against it. He didn't just fail to mention Section 3 in his newsletter and his Facebook video. He was in the room that decided to keep it in.

It's the congressional equivalent of "I didn't inhale." Technically true, and completely beside the point.

That's where the misdirection comes in. Republicans, including Langworthy, have framed the floor vote as Democrats opposing a stock trading ban. But a "NO" vote on H.R. 7008 could just as easily have been a vote against a nationwide photo ID mandate for federal elections as a vote against stock trading reform. Collapsing those two very different objections into one — "Democrats blocked stock trading reform" — isn't just spin. It's designed to let a popular idea provide cover for an unpopular one, and to make anyone who opposes the voter ID mandate look like they're defending congressional corruption instead.

Langworthy wants credit for fighting insider trading. He should also answer for the voter ID mandate he attached to the bill that's supposed to fight it — and for voting, in committee, to keep it there. This is Langworthy's voter ID problem, not just a footnote in a stock-trading story.

Related Reading

This isn't the first time Langworthy's public statements haven't matched his record:

• Nick Langworthy Says Canada Is Doing Nothing About Wildfires. The Budget Numbers Say Otherwise. (westernnypolitics.com/westernnypolitics-blog/langworthy-canada-wildfires-funding/)
• Langworthy Fights to Insure Grapes. He Already Voted to Uninsure You. (westernnypolitics.com/westernnypolitics-blog/langworthy-fights-to-insure-grapes-he-already-voted-to-uninsure-you/)
• Rep. Nick Langworthy Supports Veterans Except When He Doesn't (westernnypolitics.com/westernnypolitics-blog/buffalo-va-failures-langworthy-doge/)
• Nick Langworthy: Biography, Voting Record, Committees and Political Career (westernnypolitics.com/westernnypolitics-blog/who-is-nick-langworthy/)