As the final week of early voting begins, Iowa is in the process of setting a new record. On Friday afternoon, Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate tweeted that 708,899 voters had already cast a ballot for the Nov. 3 election, breaking the previous record set in 2012, when 679,118 Iowans voted early.
Democrats are leading in early voting, accounting for 50.6 percent of those 708,899 early voters. Republicans make up 31.3 percent of the total, with those registered as No Party casting 17.6 percent of the early votes.
Drive-through early voting will continue in Johnson County, at the parking ramp of the Johnson County Human Services Building in Iowa City (855 S Dubuque St) and Linn County, near the Jean Oxley Linn County Public Service Center in Cedar Rapids (823 3rd St SW). Hours at both locations are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Johnson County is also adding two days of voting on the weekend, with voting at the ramp available from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. In Linn County, there will be drive-through voting on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Linn County’s secondary in-person early voting site at the food court in Lindale Mall (4444 1st Ave, NE) will be open Tuesday and Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Johnson County has one satellite voting location open this week. People wanting to vote early can do so at the Iowa City Public Library from Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. On Friday, hours will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The final day for early voting at ICPL will be Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Drop boxes are available in both counties for anyone who has already filled out an absentee ballot but doesn’t want to return it by mail. The Johnson County Auditor’s Office has two drop boxes located on the south side of the Johnson County Administration Building. The drop box in Linn County is at the drive-through early voting site. Absentee ballots must be in a drop box by the time polls close at 9 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3, in order to be valid.
Mailed absentee ballots must be postmarked by Monday, Nov. 2 and arrive at the auditor’s office by Monday, Nov. 9.
Voter ID
The voter ID law passed by the Iowa Legislature in 2017 is in effect for this election, so those who want to vote early in person should bring one of the following forms of identification to their voting site.
• Iowa Voter Identification Card
• Iowa Driver’s License
• Iowa Non-Operator ID
• U.S. Military ID or Veteran ID
• U.S. Passport
• Tribal ID Card/Document
If a voter doesn’t have one of the acceptable forms of ID, another registered voter who has ID can attest to the ID-less voter’s identity. The voter without ID can then cast a provisional ballot.
People with questions regarding how or where to vote can contact their county auditor’s office. The Johnson County Auditor’s Office can be reached at 319-356-6004, and the phone number of the Linn County Auditor’s Office is 319-892-5300.
