The Democrat running against Iowa’s top election official says Republican Paul Pate, Iowa’s Secretary of State, shouldn’t have turned over voter registration lists to the federal government.
In the spring of 2025, the U-S Department of Justice asked states for the driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers of registered voters and Pate said he complied with the order this year after consulting the Iowa Attorney General’s Office and his own attorneys.
Ryan Peterman, the Democrat challenging Pate’s re-election bid, said Pate should have protected the personal data of Iowa voters. “When the DOJ came knocking here in Iowa, Paul Pate said, ‘Here you go.’ He handed our information over and he did it without a fight and he told us he was required to do that, but he was not. You see, in 30 other states, secretaries of state — both Republicans and Democrats — said, ‘No.’ They stood up, they pushed back and they had the courage to fight for their constituents.”
Pate told reporters he didn’t just turn over the list and insisted on some guidelines for what the Justice Department may use Iowa’s voter registration data for. “Let’s keep the politics out of this as much as we can,” Pate said. “I am not just a Republican running for office. When I look at my job as secretary of state, I’m the referee. I don’t run a team jersey when I’m running these elections. I’m out there to make sure the rules are followed, the laws are followed.”
Both Pate and Peterman made their comments at the State Fair during separate appearances on the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox.