Des Moines, Iowa — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate is proposing a series of steps he says will ensure the recount process in close elections is the same in every county.
Pate recorded a statement about the bill he’s asking legislators to pass.
For example, Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks was elected by a six-vote margin in 2020 after recounts in 24 counties, but the recount process was not identical in each county. Pate is recommending that when a candidate asks for a hand recount, ballots are recounted by hand and by machine. In addition, larger counties would be able to have up to seven members on recount boards. Under current law, every county is limited to a three-person board to oversee a recount.
Pate’s also calling for all counties to conduct their official canvass of elections on Tuesdays, to make the timeline uniform for every county.
