Iowa Voters Overwhelmingly Approved Two State Constitution Amendments

On November 5th, Iowans went to the polls and voted on two proposed amendments to the state constitution. Both of them passed with a majority of support from voters.

The First Amendment dealt with the voting age in Iowa. Here's the gist of the recent update to Iowa's state constitution, so says the Des Moines Register:

1. Lowering the Voting Age to 18:
   Even though people 18 and older have been able to vote in Iowa for a long time, it wasn’t actually written into the state constitution—until now. This amendment officially sets the voting age at 18, reflecting what’s been the case for decades. About 77% of voters were on board with that change.
2. Letting 17-Year-Olds Vote in Primaries:
   If you’re a 17-year-old who will turn 18 before the general election, you can now vote in the primary elections (the ones before the general election where parties pick their candidates). This is a great way to get younger people involved earlier in the process!
3. Clarifying Who Can Vote:
   The language in the constitution now clearly says that only U.S. citizens can vote, instead of the older, vaguer wording that just said "every citizen" could vote. This change makes it clearer who is eligible.
4. Residency Requirements:
   If you want to vote in Iowa, you still need to be a U.S. citizen, at least 18, and have lived in Iowa for a certain amount of time. The amendment sets those time limits as:
   • Six months in Iowa
   • Sixty days in the county where you want to vote. So, it’s pretty clear how long you need to be living in Iowa or your county to be eligible to vote.

In a nutshell

The amendment officially sets the voting age at 18, allows 17-year-olds to vote in primaries if they’ll be 18 by the general election, and tightens up the rules on who can vote and how long you have to live in Iowa and your county to vote.

The Second Of Two

Onward to the second and final of the amendments, Gubernatorial Succession.

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According to Ballopedia, This new amendment clears all that up. It officially says that if the governor can’t serve—whether due to death, resignation, or removal—the lieutenant governor will step in, even if they were appointed and not elected.

So, there’s no question about the appointed lieutenant governor’s ability to take over the governor’s role if needed.

Here’s the wording of the amendment:

• If the governor is temporarily disabled, the lieutenant governor steps in until the governor is back, or if the governor dies, resigns, or is removed from office, the lieutenant governor takes over as governor for the rest of the term.
• When the lieutenant governor takes over, their own position becomes vacant, and someone new will be appointed to fill it.
• The rules also apply to governor-elects and lieutenant governor-elects in the same way.

The amendment just makes it super clear that if something happens to the governor, the lieutenant governor (appointed or elected) will step in and finish the job. Now, we know.