116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
It’s Election Day: How, when and where to vote
Iowans head to the polls today to cast ballots in national, state and county elections
Nov. 5, 2024 4:00 am, Updated: Nov. 5, 2024 7:47 am
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Election Day is finally upon us, capping off an election season and presidential campaign unlike any other — one that has featured two assassination attempts, a criminal conviction and the late departure of a sitting president as a candidate.
Now, Iowans will join other Americans in choosing between Republican former President Donald Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in a high-stakes election that appears deadlocked in key battleground states.
Also on the ballot are two tightly contested Iowa congressional races that are among a handful that could decide control of Congress. Both major political parties are bracing for potential narrow majorities come January.
Iowa voters also will choose who to represent them in the Iowa Legislature and on county boards of supervisors — and much more.
Get election results
The Gazette is making much of its online election coverage free as a community service. On TheGazette.com: Follow a live election blog during the day Tuesday, then check back for results after the polls close. In The Green Gazette online replica edition: An expanded edition will report results Wednesday morning. In The Gazette: Complete coverage and analyses will be in Thursday’s paper.
How to vote
The polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. today.
Absentee ballots sent by mail must be returned to the county auditor’s office by 8 p.m. today or they will not be counted. Voters who requested a ballot by mail but have not yet returned it, can:
- Hand deliver the ballot to their county election office by 8 p.m.
- Surrender their absentee ballot at their precinct polling place today and vote a regular ballot. Voters also can vote a provisional ballot at the polls if they cannot surrender their voted absentee ballot. Voted absentee ballots cannot be delivered to the polling place on Election Day.
- Voters with a disability can designate an immediate family member or a member of their household to return their ballot.
Iowans can track the status of their absentee ballot and whether it has been received by the county auditor on the Iowa Secretary of State’s website at sos.iowa.gov.
Where to vote
Iowa voters can find their polling place on website of Iowa Secretary of State, the state’s top elections official.
What to bring to the polls
Voters will need to bring a current, valid ID with them to vote on Election Day. Valid forms of ID include:
- A signed Iowa Voter Identification Card
- Iowa Driver's License
- Iowa non-operator ID
- U.S. military ID or veteran ID
- U.S. passport
- Tribal ID card/document
A voter without one of the above forms of ID may have their identity attested to by another voter registered within their precinct.
Voters can register to vote at the polls. Doing so requires providing proof of identity and residence. Proof of residence documents may be in an electronic format or on paper, and include a residential lease, utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, property tax statement or government check. The document must contain the voter’s name, current address and it must have been issued within the last 45 days.
Voters who lack an Iowa-issued ID may use a photo ID that is current, valid and contains an expiration date. The following are acceptable IDs:
- Out-of-state driver’s license or non-operator ID
- ID card issued by an employer
- Student ID issued by an Iowa high school or college
More information is available at voterreadyiowa.gov.
Weather
The forecast for Cedar Rapids and Iowa City calls for showers and the possibility of thunderstorms in the morning before noon, then a slight chance of showers between noon and 3 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. The forecast calls for a 50 percent chance of rainfall, with amounts of less than a tenth of an inch. Higher amounts are possible with thunderstorms.
Cloudy and breezy conditions are expected throughout the day, with gusts as high as 35 miles per hour and a temperature rising to near 66 degrees by 10 a.m., then falling to around 56 degrees during the remainder of the day.
Who’s on the ballot
At the top of the ticket is a highly polarizing and contentious race for president between Trump and Harris that has careened through a felony trial, Democratic President Joe Biden being pushed off the ticket and multiple assassination attempts.
Regionally, Iowans also will vote for their next member of the U.S. House. All four races feature Republican incumbents facing Democratic challengers.
Democrat Christina Bohannan, a University of Iowa law professor and former state lawmaker, is running in a rematch to unseat Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who is seeking a third term representing Iowa's 1st Congressional District.
The 20-county district includes Iowa City, Davenport and rural southeast Iowa.
Republican incumbent Ashley Hinson is running for re-election to continue representing Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District. The two-term incumbent from Marion faces Cedar Falls Democrat Sarah Corkery and no-party candidate Jody Puffett of Delhi.
The district encompasses 22 counties in Northeast Iowa, including Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Cedar Falls and Dubuque.
The Gazette Voter Guide – 2024 Election Coverage
Learn more about who's on the ballot and what the candidates had to say about the issues in The Gazette's Voter Guide www.thegazette.com/voter-guide/.
Also on the ballot will be local campaigns for the Iowa Legislature. Iowans will be voting on their member in the 100-member Iowa House. Some districts also will have campaigns for the 50-member Iowa Senate. Republicans go into the election with strong majorities in both legislative chambers: 64-36 in the House and 33-16 in the Senate.
Voters also will decide whether to retain an Iowa Supreme Court justice, four appellate judges and 64 district court judges.
In Johnson County, there is a vote on a conservation bond but no contested races. In Linn County, there is a contested race for county auditor between Republican Terry Chostner, a sales engineer from Alburnett, and Democrat Todd Taylor, a state senator from Cedar Rapids. And for supervisor, Molly Donahue, an educator and Democrat in the Iowa Senate, faces Republican Brandy Zumbach Meisheid, a business owner and community volunteer.
Some other voters will face local ballot questions.
What else is on the ballot
Voters also will be asked whether to amend the Iowa Constitution related to the voting age in the state and the gubernatorial line of succession.
The proposed amendment would codify Iowa’s voting age as 18, not 21. Though 18-year-olds have had the right to vote in Iowa for decades, the state constitution still says citizens age 21 and older have the right to vote under an amendment ratified in 1970.
The proposed amendment also would allow 17-year-olds, who will turn 18 by the general election, to vote in a primary election.
It also would change language in the constitution to state that “only U.S. citizens” can vote. The current language states that “every” citizen can vote.
The other constitutional amendment would provide clear guidelines for what happens if an Iowa governor resigns, dies or is removed from office.
The issue arose in 2017, when Gov. Kim Reynolds replaced former Gov. Terry Branstad. A legal question arose about whether the constitution granted Reynolds’ appointed lieutenant governor, Adam Gregg, the office’s full authority and whether he would become governor if Reynolds died or had to leave office.
The proposed new language would clarify that in these circumstances, the lieutenant governor will take over the position of governor until the end of the elected term. The measure also clarifies that this change will create a vacancy in the office of lieutenant governor, allowing the new governor to appoint a new lieutenant governor to fill the position.
Getting to the polls
Residents in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City can use free city bus transportation to get to their polling locations on Election Day Tuesday.
In Cedar Rapids, buses will run during regular hours, from 5:30 a.m.-7:15 p.m. Rides will be free to everyone. Riders will not be required to prove voter registration or destination in order to ride for free.
For help planning a Cedar Rapids Transit trip, visit the City’s website: CityofCR.com/Transit.
In Iowa City, bus transportation is always free, including Tuesday for Election Day.
Riders who need help determining the best route to their precinct can use the city’s polling place transit guide at icgov.org, use the Transit app or call 319-356-5151.
Who already voted?
In Iowa, early voting locations have seen long lines. As of 7 a.m. Monday, 634,836 people had voted early in Iowa, according to the Iowa Secretary of State's Office. That number includes Iowans who voted via mail-in ballot, as well as in-person absentee voters.
That’s more than a third of the 1,680,803 Iowans listed as “active voters” by the Iowa Secretary of State. Under a 2021 law, Iowans who missed voting in a general election are moved from being active to inactive but still remain eligible to vote.
That number is down from the 955,971 Iowans who had returned early ballots in 2020 the Monday before the election, and is slightly ahead of 2016 when 630,540 early ballots had been returned the day ahead of the election.
Iowa saw record turnout in the most recent presidential election, in 2020, when more than 1.7 million votes were cast in the state. More than 1 million absentee ballots — 59 percent of all ballots cast — were submitted, which was another state record.
Absentee voting surged in 2020 in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Here is how the early voting breaks down:
- Republicans: 252,139, 38% of active GOP voters
- Democrats: 243,902, 49% of active Democratic voters
- No party: 135,024, 27% of active no party voters
- Libertarian: 3,209, 28% of active Libertarian voters
- Other party: 562, 23% of active other party voters
If you had an issue voting
The Iowa Secretary of State has an election security tip line on its website to report problems voting, or voters can call 1-888-SOS-VOTE.
What can I do if I make a mistake when voting my ballot?
Tell a precinct election official. The official will take the ballot and have the voter "spoil" it so it cannot be counted. They will then be given another ballot to vote. Voters may receive up to three ballots.
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
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