Iowa passes bill limiting early voting

The bill would cut Iowa's early voting period from 29 days to 20 days and reduce the absentee request period from 120 days to 70 days. It would also bar county auditors from mailing out absentee ballot applications.

ADVERTISEMENT
Image
Ari Hoffman Seattle WA
ADVERTISEMENT

The Iowa House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday night that would limit the early voting in the state.

According to KCCI, the bill would cut Iowa's early voting period from 29 days to 20 days and reduce the absentee request period from 120 days to 70 days. It would also bar county auditors from mailing out absentee ballot applications. Absentee ballots would be required to arrive by the time polls close in order to be counted, as long as they were postmarked on or before Election Day.

The bill passed the House 57-37 with six abstentions.  According to the Des Moines Register, the vote came one day after the state Senate passed the measure along party-lines.

House Speaker Pat Grassley said in a statement: "Iowans deserve an election that they can trust. One that makes it easy to vote and hard to cheat. That is exactly what they'll get with this legislation. Despite the hysteria coming from the Left, Iowa will continue to see successful elections with high voter turnout and results they can trust. With this bill, Iowa's election system will continue to set an example for the rest of the country."

Democrat Rep. Bruce Hunter told KCCI "Voter integrity is not telling an elderly person she has to jump through hoops. This is voter suppression. The dictionary definition of it."

Republican Rep. Bobby Kaufmann said he believed Iowa's 2020 election was successful, and that the bill is about improving, not a response to fraud.

"I heard time and time again in dozens of prepared remarks that this bill was derived from fraud. Fraud. Fraud. Fraud. So, I apologize for ruining your prepared remarks by emphatically stating in the beginning of this debate — in the first sentence that came out of my mouth — that this bill has nothing to do with fraud."

Democrat Rep. Sharon Steckman said, "Why are we doing this in Iowa? We had no fraud. We had a record turnout. People were happy with the way they got to vote absentee — a million people. And you better believe some of those people were Republicans, because you won."

The bill now awaits Governor Kim Reynolds signature.

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Join and support independent free thinkers!

We’re independent and can’t be cancelled. The establishment media is increasingly dedicated to divisive cancel culture, corporate wokeism, and political correctness, all while covering up corruption from the corridors of power. The need for fact-based journalism and thoughtful analysis has never been greater. When you support The Post Millennial, you support freedom of the press at a time when it's under direct attack. Join the ranks of independent, free thinkers by supporting us today for as little as $1.

Support The Post Millennial

Remind me next month

To find out what personal data we collect and how we use it, please visit our Privacy Policy

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
ADVERTISEMENT
© 2024 The Post Millennial, Privacy Policy | Do Not Sell My Personal Information