Iowa House passes election bills on voter verification, ranked choice voting

The Iowa House recently passed two significant election reform bills focused on voter registration, citizenship verification, and election recount procedures. House File 954 allows the Iowa secretary of state to hire vendors to verify voter citizenship status, aiming to avoid issues experienced during the 2024 election when many ballots were challenged due to outdated citizenship information. Additionally, it bans ranked choice voting and raises the threshold for third parties to gain major party status, a move criticized by some Democrats as limiting voter choice. House File 928, addressing recount procedures, stipulates that only elections decided by a very narrow margin would be eligible for recounts. These bills, which reflect Republican priorities for