Iowa House GOP bill to require in-person caucusing, endangering Democrats' mail-in plans

House Republican lawmakers have introduced a bill to require Iowans to be physically present to participate in the state's caucuses — a move that would upend Democrats' plans to allow mail-in participation.

House Study Bill 245 states that anyone participating in a party's caucus must be present in person and must have registered as a member of the political party at least 70 days before the caucus.

Lawmakers are scheduled to hold a subcommittee hearing on the bill at noon Wednesday and could hold a committee vote on the measure Thursday.

"If we do mail-in ballot voting as a caucus in Iowa, New Hampshire views that as a primary and they will jump us, which will jeopardize our first-in-the-nation status," said Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, R-Wilton, who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee.

For Democrats, the loss of Iowa's No. 1 spot in the presidential selection process is all but certain.

The Democratic National Committee voted in February to make South Carolina the first state in the party's 2024 presidential nominating process, followed by Nevada, New Hampshire, Georgia and Michigan, removing Iowa from the lead-off spot it has occupied for 50 years.

But the national party's new calendar is contingent on each state certifying that they are able to make any statutory changes and can hold their primary on the contest specified by the DNC's plan. Two of those states, New Hampshire and Georgia, were unable to meet an earlier deadline and have an extension until June to show their compliance.

Iowa's Democratic and Republican parties have long worked hand in hand to preserve the state's spot at the front of the line. But Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart criticized the Iowa GOP bill in a statement Tuesday.

"This legislation proposed by Republicans is a surprise move," Hart said. "It’s disappointing that Republicans proposed this bill with no input from Democrats and it is potentially damaging to the history of how Iowa’s parties have always worked together regarding the Iowa caucuses. Iowa Democrats will do what’s best for Iowa and that means moving forward with an inclusive caucus process."

As part of Iowa's bid to remain first, the Iowa Democratic Party put forward a plan last June to remake the party's caucus process by having participants cast written "presidential preference cards" in the mail in the weeks leading to caucus night, where the results would be announced.

Hart reiterated the party's commitment to a mail-in process in a March 10 appearance on "Iowa Press" on Iowa PBS.

"We're moving forward on that no matter what," Hart said on the show. "And I think that that's such a positive thing for us that we're creating a process that more people can participate in."

Kaufmann, who is a senior adviser to former President Donald Trump's 2024 caucus campaign, rejected the assertion that he was ruining Democrats' plans to hold a mail-in caucus and said the Iowa Democratic Party's plan is what is jeopardizing their first-in-the-nation status.

"As far as ruining their plans, they’re ruining their plans by doing things that I would classify as turning it into a primary which will guarantee that the New Hampshire secretary of state will jump us," he said. "So this is me attempting to protect the integrity of the caucuses."

Rep. Ross Wilburn, D-Ames, who was the Iowa Democratic Party chair last year when the party proposed the mail-in system, said it would help expand access to the caucuses by letting Iowans participate even if they have to work a shift or take care of kids on caucus night.

"The mail-in option for presidential preference would provide the greatest amount of flexibility and participation in the caucus process," he said.

Kaufmann said he disagrees with the idea that it's difficult for people to participate in the caucuses.

"I don’t think it’s hard at all to caucus," he said. "In fact, I think the opposite. I think it’s extremely easy to caucus."

Kaufmann said the intention of having people register 70 days before the caucuses is to prevent people from switching parties to influence the other party's results, and to prevent people from caucusing more than once if the Democratic and Republican caucuses are held on different days.

"I like to call it keeping the rules equal for both parties," Kaufmann said. "I wouldn’t want Republicans to have 10,000 people show up and caucus for a Democrat just like I don’t want 10,000 Democrats to show up and caucus for a Republican."

Iowa's current law already limits caucus participation to Iowans "who (have) not already participated in the caucus of any political party within the same year."

Wilburn said requiring Iowans to register ahead of time presents another hurdle for Iowans.

"That gets back to the participation, especially younger voters and folks who are newer to voting, folks who haven’t participated in a long while, it would take away their voice to be able to express their opinion on who should be president," he said.

Iowa has same-day voter registration, and the bill's requirement to register ahead of time would only apply to caucuses. Iowans could still register to vote at the polls when participating in federal, state and local elections.

Democrats are not expected to have a competitive caucus in 2024 as President Joe Biden has moved towards announcing a reelection bid.

On the Republican side, several candidates are vying for the nomination, including former President Donald Trump, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson. Former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are among those still considering mounting campaigns.

It's not clear how the House bill will fare in the Iowa Senate, which is also controlled by Republicans. Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver, R-Grimes, said in a statement that Iowa's first-in-the-nation status benefits the state and he hopes both parties will work together to preserve it.

"The Senate is aware of the legislation," Whitver said. At this time no determination has been made regarding its future."

Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa GOP bill would require in-person caucusing, stifling Dem reforms