Do recent laws reflect will of Iowans?

Gov. Kim Reynolds called a special session of the Legislature to push through a new abortion ban, now that the Iowa Supreme Court has refused to overturn a lower-court ruling that halted enforcement of the state’s 2018 abortion ban law. To be clear, that law banned abortions after approximately six weeks, which is before most women are even aware they’re pregnant. All justices on the Iowa Supreme Court have been appointed by Republican governors.

According to an Iowa Poll conducted in March of this year by Selzer & Co., one of the most reliable and accurate polling firms in the nation, 61percent of Iowa adults say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 35 percent say the procedure should be illegal in most or all cases. But Reynolds and Republican lawmakers aren’t listening to that majority. Maybe that 61 percent of Iowa adults haven’t been vocal enough about their feelings. Maybe Reynolds just doesn’t care, more interested in showing the nation how staunchly conservative she can be.

This is not the first time Reynolds has pushed through a law widely unpopular among Iowans. According to that same Iowa Poll, the school voucher law rushed to her desk early this year was opposed by 62 percent of Iowans, while only 34 percent approved.

It seems that the majority of us must more vigorously express our wills to our representatives and, perhaps, more carefully consider our voting decisions this fall.

David Duer

Iowa City