There is nothing more vital to the success and continuation of this democracy than the act of voting. Iowa Democrats - like all truly concerned patriots - are invested in making sure that all eligible voters are able to exercise their right to vote and participate in our democracy. In order to make sure this happens, Iowa Democrats are committed to fighting against voter suppression tactics or any move towards redrawing voting districts based on anything other than population and geographic considerations. The party also is committed to restoring voting rights to those who have repaid their debt to society.

 

We’re focused on making sure our elections are kept free of insidious influences - both domestic and foreign. It’s unfortunate that in today’s polarized and upside-down environment, that we even have to state to this, but, simply put, we will not allow our elections to be interfered with by foreign governments intent on doing our democracy harm.

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SAY NO TO UNNECESSARY VOTER I.D. LAWS

 

There’s no doubt that the Iowa legislative session of 2017 was needlessly damaging to everyday Iowans -- whether it was ‘stand your ground,’ the stripping away of public union rights, and a whole host of other laws. Perhaps no law was more politically-minded and completely unnecessary but the voter I.D. law voted in during the 2017 session. As many of these same laws passed by the Republican-held legislature, the law is already being contested in the courts and causing confusion. We hold Secretary of State Paul Pate and the Republican-held legislature responsible for ...

 

Voter I.D. laws legislate a non-existent problem. Not only are rates of voter fraud incredibly low, but these laws tend to discriminate against minority populations and those of lower socioeconomic status. False allegations of voter fraud(like Trump’s claims in 2016) damage the public perception of the freeness and fairness of our elections. Once the trust is lost in our democracy, it may never be regained.  Secretaries of State across the country were able to debunk these 2016 claims, and we must stay aware and vigilant of this propaganda.

 

Instead of finding new ways to keep people from voting (especially when American voter turnout trends well below most of our peers), we should be encouraging people to vote. Democrat, Republican or independent, we must all admit that’s it important for ALL citizens in this democracy to have the right to help form our future, otherwise, it’s not a future chosen by us.

 

GERRYMANDERING - A THREAT TO FAIR & EQUAL REPRESENTATION.

 

An even more suppressive voting tactic than unnecessary and prohibitive voter I.D. laws is gerrymandering. Iowa Democrats strongly support non-partisan / non-legislative efforts to draw congressional district lines in a fair and equal manner, which for the last several decades the state of Iowa has made a commitment to and has (for the most part) done.  While this process is never perfect, we do believe states should do their best to make sure citizens are divided equally amongst - the snuffing out of voices is always a threat to our democracy, as it causes apathy, cynicism -- and sometimes, hopelessness.

 

PROTECTING FREE & FAIR ELECTIONS.

 

In 2016, the Russian government actively interfered in our elections and it came close to home, with some of those indicted in Mueller’s probe accused of visiting and casing Iowa county websites for vulnerabilities. Iowa Democrats are completely invested in supporting and protecting free and fair elections and believe utmost care should not only be taken at voting sites but also around protecting voter registration information. In some cases, it appears as not enough attention is being paid to all aspects of protecting the votes of Americans, and as a party, we are strongly committed to making sure the vote is safe. If Americans can’t trust the veracity of election results, our future as a democracy is at stake. As a country, we are deeply invested in making sure our elections are free and fair - we need to give our local governments the resources to do just that.