Voters from Story, Black Hawk and Johnson counties are appealing to the Iowa Supreme Court to stop a new law requiring supervisors to be elected by district.
A judge in the Iowa District Court for Johnson County in early January denied 14 voters’ request to halt the implementation of Senate File 75, which requires the three counties home to public regent universities to shift to a district model.
The voters have filed an interlocutory appeal with the Iowa Supreme Court. While appeals typically follow a final decision in a case, interlocutory appeals occur during proceedings in a lower court.
Story County is home to Iowa State University in Ames; Johnson County houses the University of Iowa in Iowa City; and Cedar Falls in Black Hawk County is home to the University of Northern Iowa.
Appeal leans on denied claim of ‘fundamental right to vote’
In the 15-page appeal, Iowans argue that SF 75 “burdens the fundamental right to vote” by limiting residents’ choices about how they want to elect their representatives.
The voters call the new law “a legislative classification scheme” that produces different structures and rules for only Story, Black Hawk and Johnson counties.
The appeal also focuses on the Johnson County District Court’s application of the rational-basis test, which imposes a lower burden on the state and requires only a relation to a “legitimate government interest.”
Johnson County District Court Judge Lars Anderson agreed with the state that rational relationships exist between the Iowa Legislature’s interests to protect rural voters, student voters and “longterm” voters.
The appeal argues that strict scrutiny, which requires the state to prove that its law or actions are “narrowly tailored” and serve a “compelling government interest,” should have been applied because of fundamental voting rights.
Anderson, in his decision in the lower court, wrote that Senate File 75 “provides for ‘an expression of direct democracy,’ in which voters are still allowed to vote.”
“This is not the same as the fundamental right to vote,” Anderson said.
Later in his Jan. 7 decision, he said injunctive relief was not necessary because each of the 14 residents still retained their fundamental right to vote.
Court likely working on a tight timeline to hear voters’ right case
The Iowa Supreme Court will first decide whether to grant interlocutory review.
If it does, the court may need to expedite a final decision on a typically slow-moving schedule.
Senate File 75 took effect on Jan. 1.
Both Story County and Johnson County have drawn and implemented new districts to adhere to the law. The supervisor seats in each of the three counties, though currently filled, are required to be on this year’s election ballot. Primaries are scheduled for June 2, while the general election is set for Nov. 3.
Judge Anderson was critical of the voters’ Dec. 17 decision to appeal for an injunction in his January ruling, writing that they had waited “a substantial amount of time” to seek out such relief, as the three counties had already gone through several processes to redistrict their counties.
“Plaintiffs’ proposal would throw these measures into disarray and create further problems in preparing for and administering elections,” Anderson wrote.
County candidates can begin filing their documents for the primary on March 2, under the supervisor district system.
Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on X @ryanhansen01.
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Iowans appeal ruling, seek return to at-large supervisor vote
Reporting by Ryan Hansen, Iowa City Press-Citizen / Iowa City Press-Citizen
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