Iowa
Iowa House declares it can’t count new ballots in Decorah area race
It appears there won’t be a change in the votes, in a disputed Iowa House election in the Decorah area.
The Republican-led Iowa House has voted to reject 29 absentee mail ballots cast in District 55, meaning that Republican incumbent Michael Bergan wins the seat by nine votes over Democrat Kayla Koether.
Bergan says he’s relieved by the decision which preserves his election win from November.
The ballots have been confirmed by a U.S. Postal Service scan of a barcode on the envelopes as having been sent to election officials on time, but Republicans insist those barcodes can’t be used to validate ballots.
Koether, a McGregor native, says the process failed northeast Iowa voters.