New voter registration totals ahead of Election Day show a significant advantage for Republicans across the state, according to the Iowa Secretary of State’s office.
Although Iowa allows voters to register on Election Day at the polls, the numbers, released Nov. 1, provide a snapshot of the electorate in the final days of the race.
According to the numbers, 669,053 people are registered as active Republicans in Iowa, accounting for about 40% of all registered voters.
There are 495,751 people registered as active Democrats, making up about 29% of all registered voters.
No-party voters account for about 30% of electorate, which includes 502,243 people.
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Libertarians and voters registered as “other” make up small slices of the electorate at about 0.7% and 0.1% respectively.
Republicans have cheered their voter registration totals as evidence that they’re poised for a strong showing on Tuesday.
Here’s a look at the current party breakdown in each congressional district.
1st Congressional District
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Republicans: 156,375 — 36%
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Democrats: 135,727 — 32%
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No party: 134,823 — 31%
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Libertarians: 2,736 — 1%
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Other: 670 — 0%
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Total: 430,331
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2nd Congressional District
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Republicans: 156,094 — 37%
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Democrats: 131,730 — 31%
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No party: 135,754 — 32%
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Libertarians: 2,803 — 1%
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Other: 596 — 0%
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Total: 426,977
3rd Congressional District
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Republicans: 158,362 — 37%
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Democrats: 139,879 — 33%
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No party: 124,469 — 29%
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Libertarians: 3,192 — 1%
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Other: 606 — 0%
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Total: 426,508
4th Congressional District
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Republicans: 198,222 — 50%
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Democrats: 88,415 — 22%
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No party: 107,197 — 27%
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Libertarians: 2,615 — 1%
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Other: 538 — 0%
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Total: 396,987
Republicans outpace Democrats for growing registrations
Since the start of the year, Republicans — who hosted their first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses in January — have grown their active registration rolls by about 74,500 people.
That outpaces Democrats, who added about 24,700 active registrations since the start of the year. And about 60,000 active no-party voters were added to the rolls.
However, it’s hard compare voter registration data to previous election cycles because of redistricting and changes made to Iowa’s voter roll maintenance systems.
Iowa completed its decennial redistricting process in 2021, which changed the boundaries of Iowa’s congressional districts.
And although those maps were in effect for the 2022 midterm races, Iowa has since made changes to the way the Secretary of State categorizes voters on its voter rolls.
In 2021, Republicans passed a change to state law now requires registered voters to be marked inactive if they fail to vote in the most recent general election.
Previously, they were marked inactive after failing to vote in two consecutive general elections. In 2023, more than half a million registered Iowa voters were moved to “inactive” status.
Inactive voters are still able to cast a ballot on Election Day.
Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Des Moines Register. She is also covering the 2024 presidential race for USA TODAY as a senior national campaign correspondent. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa Republicans lead Democrats in November voter registration totals
