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2020-06-06

Iowa Attempts to Limit Election Official’s Power During Pandemic

Following Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate’s decision to send absentee ballot requests to every registered voter ahead of the June 2nd primary, Senate Republicans passed a bill to limit the Secretary’s power and prohibit the same action from occurring again. Pate’s decision was made in an effort to allow all Iowans the change to vote without increasing the risk of spreading COVID-19 at the polls. With many rural counties reducing in-person polling places to just one per county, absentee voting was the only choice for many rural Iowans. The decision by Pate resulted in a record voter turnout for the state.