IA County Auditors Still Processing Election Law Changes

Public News Service

April 20, 2021

DES MOINES, Iowa -- While they pore over the changes, Iowa's county auditors still have reservations about a new law that drastically alters several of the state's election procedures.

Gov. Kim Reynolds recently signed a bill pushed by Republicans which, among other things, reduces the early voting period from 29 days to 20 days. It also shortens the window for requesting absentee ballots.

Ryan Dokter, president of the Iowa State Association of County Auditors and Sioux County auditor, said any time there's a change, it can produce a challenge because you have to re-educate voters.

He also said the absentee provisions could put even more of a strain on election staffs.

"When you start shortening windows, that means we'll need more people to process the voters in an efficient manner," Dokter explained.

He noted there is concern about language threatening auditors with fines and jail time if they don't comply with the law. Generally, he explained, that is not something election officials willfully do.

The change was spurred by a handful of auditors last year sending out pre-filled absentee ballot request forms.

Supporters of the changes argued they are meant to restore integrity in the election system, but the law is being challenged in court by a Latino civil rights group, which calls the move unconstitutional.

Sue Lloyd, Buena Vista County auditor, said they will get the job done, but added it might be harder for smaller offices to deal with absentee demand, especially in a presidential election.

She questions the fairness of putting auditors in the spotlight over what some describe as a politically-motivated law.

"We're here to do our job regardless of whether we're Republican or Democrat," Lloyd asserted. "We're doing the best we can. We want fair elections. We want to help the voters as much as we can to make sure that they have their right to vote."

She is concerned about restrictions on drop boxes and satellite voting and how it will impact her county's operations.

Voters' rights groups also worried about limiting access to marginalized voters.

Despite his concerns, Dokter acknowledged there are a few provisions that might be helpful to offices, including closing the polls at 8:00 p.m. instead of 9:00 p.m. He stressed it helps because election workers tend to be older.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.

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