Iowa legislators literally played a game this week while they wait on their leaders to come to a deal that will end session. Sunday legislators got together after the Iowa Cubs game for the first annual Legislative Softball Game. Legislators took to the field to raise money for the Food Bank of Iowa and the Puppy Jake Foundation; it was Republicans vs. Democrats. The final score: Republicans 27, Democrats 16, and $26,000 for charities.
At this point in session, it's the House vs. Senate. Leaders in the Iowa House and the Iowa Senate still cannot reach agreement on budgets and using public school funds to send kids to private school. House Republicans are short 20-some votes to pass the education changes, and the Senate Republicans and the Governor refuse to talk about budgets until the education changes are passed by the House. Until someone gives in, there is no deal, and no end in sight for session.
The delay in session hurts House Republicans more than anyone - 14 of their members have primary opponents, and six of them are facing off against each other (redistricting threw them into the same districts). Only one Senate Republican and two House Democrats have a primary opponent. You can see the list here; the primary election is coming up soon on June 7 and the more time these legislators spend in Des Moines, the less time they have to door knock and campaign in their newly drawn districts. Those new districts mean new voters to introduce themselves to, and time is running out to do that before June 7.
Speaking of primaries, advice from Secretary of State Paul Pate:
- Because of redistricting, you may not be voting for the people you know. Check out your new district here, and who is running in it here. Many county auditors already have sample ballots on their websites.
- Make a plan to vote in the June 7 primary:
- If you want to vote on Election Day (polls open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.), check to make sure where you will be voting. Your polling site may have changed. You can see where you vote on Election Day here (or you can call your county auditor).
- If you want to vote by mail, you need to request your ballot by May 23 (but don't wait - you can request them now - ballots must be received by the county auditor by Election Day, postmarks no longer matter, so you want to give the post office plenty of time to deliver the ballot, or make sure a family member or other allowed person can deliver it or you).
- You can also vote early at your county auditor's office or a satellite voting location in your community starting May 18. Your county auditor's office can tell you more about these options.
Finally, most counties are looking for people to work on Election Day as a poll worker. You get paid - and you get to be part of the American election system! You can find out more and apply here!
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