DES MOINES, Iowa (Gray Media Iowa Capitol Bureau) – The number of Iowans registered with a political party has changed since the last presidential election. The number of active registered Democrats and independents has dropped. The number of active Republicans has also dropped, but the party now has a clear lead.
A look at the numbers shows that Republican candidates have performed better over the past decade. The number of active Democratic voters has fallen by 220,000 since July 2020. At the same time, the number of active unaffiliated voters fell by 180,000. The Republicans lost only 52,000.
That means there are now more registered Republicans than registered Democrats, or those registered with no party affiliation. And Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, who has been in office for 35 years, says this is the first time he can remember that happening.
“As far as I can remember, this is the first time in my adult life that Republicans have outnumbered Democrats and also outnumbered the No party. Because No party is usually the numerically higher category,” Pate said.
Pate says party registration numbers are driven by the candidates. “It’s driven by a message and that’s the candidates. So when the party has a really dynamic candidate, someone who inspires them, there’s a surge. You see that in the past. We saw that with Barack Obama, we saw that with Ronald Reagan, we saw that with Trump’s first election cycle, so there’s a cycle there,” he said.
Rita Hart, chairwoman of the Iowa Democratic Party, explains the changes:
“You know, it’s hard to say, but I don’t think it’s surprising to anyone that Republicans are having some momentum when it comes to personality,” she said.
While Iowans have favored Republican candidates for the past eight years, Pate said that can change at any time. “They may have a dynamo here in the near future that will turn things around, and it won’t take long. Seriously, in four or six years, you can turn things around if you have the right candidates and the right message,” Pate said.
According to Hart, enthusiasm is growing with the change on the Democratic presidential ticket.
“There are so many people, new people, wanting to get involved and volunteer. Younger people and people who are just excited about the rise in popularity that we’re seeing here in this elite area,” Hart said.
Another explanation for the changes is a 2021 law that marks voters as inactive if they do not vote in a general election. This has led to an increase in the number of inactive voters. All parties have seen this figure increase, but independents have been hit the hardest.
If your voter registration has been marked inactive, you can restore active status by casting your vote, requesting a mail-in ballot, or updating your voter registration.
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Conner Hendricks covers state government and politics for Gray Media-owned stations in Iowa. Email to [email protected]; and follow him on Facebook at Conner Hendricks TV or on X/Twitter @ConnerReports.
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