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Young Iowa voters should not be declared inactive

Terese Grant

Apr. 30, 2021 2:50 pm

There is something terribly wrong with the recent election laws that required the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office to send an inactive notice to nearly 400 17-and-a-half-year-olds. These young people, who were not old enough to cast a ballot in the November election but could register to vote, are now listed as inactive.

For a young person to receive this type of notification can be extremely discouraging. This requirement has a negative effect on these young people and could easily disenfranchise potential voters who are typically eager to cast their first vote. Changes need to be made in this requirement so that our young people will be empowered to vote in the future.

Terese Grant

Grinnell

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