DES MOINES, IOWA (April 29, 2020) — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate announces a new statewide initiative to recruit poll workers for the June 2 primary. Normally, Iowa poll-workers tend to come from age-groups that are more vulnerable to COVID-19. This June, Sec Pate asks younger Iowans to step up and serve.

DES MOINES, IOWA (April 22, 2020) — The absentee voting period for mailed ballots in Iowa’s June primary begins this Thursday, April 23. Secretary of State Paul Pate and county auditors across the state are encouraging Iowans to vote from home during the COVID-19 pandemic to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

DES MOINES, IOWA (April 15, 2020) — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate and AARP Iowa are calling for older voters to continue practicing social-distancing and to utilize absentee voting by mail for the June 2 primary election. Sec Pate will mail every active registered voter in Iowa an absentee-ballot request-form later this month, and AARP will launch radio ads today encouraging older voters to take advantage of voting by mail.

DES MOINES, IOWA (April 13, 2020) — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate unveiled a searchable database Monday that allows Iowans to easily locate people available to do remote notarizations. The new feature allows searchers to find remote-authorized notaries by city, zip code, and other means. The database is available by clicking here.

DES MOINES, IOWA (April 1, 2020) – Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate announced on March 31 his office plans to mail an absentee ballot-request form to every active registered voter in the state ahead of the June 2 primary. The forms will be sent in mid-late April and will include prepaid postage for return mailing to county auditors.

DES MOINES, IOWA (March 24, 2020) — The State Objection Panel, which is comprised of Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, and Auditor of State Rob Sand, met Tuesday to consider nine objections filed against primary election candidates. The panel heard arguments from the challengers and the candidates or their representatives.

Below is how panel ruled on each challenge.

DES MOINES, IOWA (March 23, 2020) — Secretary of State Paul Pate is extending the absentee voting period to 40 days for Iowans who choose to vote by mail in the June primary. He is also encouraging Iowans to cast ballots by mail, in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This change will allow voters more time to send their ballots and provide county auditors a longer window for processing.
DES MOINES, IOWA (March 23, 2020) — The State Objection Panel, which is comprised of Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, and Auditor of State Rob Sand, will convene Tuesday afternoon to consider nine objections filed against primary election candidates. Due to the closure of the Iowa State Capitol Building to the public, the meeting will be conducted via conference call. Call-in information is provided below.

DES MOINES, IOWA (March 12, 2020) — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate announced a plan to provide $1 million to Iowa counties to assist them with cybersecurity resources ahead of the 2020 elections. Pate made the pledge today during an annual gathering of Iowa’s county auditors.

DES MOINES, IOWA (February 21, 2020) — The 2020 candidate filing period for state and federal offices in the June 2 primary and November 3 general election begins Monday, February 24 and runs through Friday, March 13 at 5PM. Only candidates from the Republican and Democratic parties will file for the primary elections.

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