Website: www.driowa.org
Disability Rights Iowa
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 15, 2019
Contact: Anne Matte

DRI Announces Caucus Accessibility Campaign

(Des Moines, Iowa) – July 15, 2019:

Iowa must be not only the first, but the best caucus in the nation. As Kyle Spading, an Iowan with a disability from Fairfax said, “caucuses should be built for everyone.”

Today, Disability Rights Iowa, the protection and advocacy system for Iowans with disabilities, is launching a campaign to ensure that the 2020 caucuses are accessible to all Iowans, including over 300,000 Iowans with disabilities. 

In the past, Iowans with disabilities could not fully participate in the caucuses because they were held on a single winter night in locations that had long lines, limited seating, no microphones, inadequate signage, few interpreters, insufficient accessible parking, and no alternative formats for registering or participating. DRI worked to meet with the parties to improve access issues.

The political parties are now committed to making the 2020 caucuses more accessible and inclusive for Iowans with disabilities. The Iowa Democratic Party is planning to have several virtual caucuses so that caucus goers can express their preferences by telephone. Both of the major political parties will have written policies and procedures on their websites to request reasonable accommodations at the caucuses, and one point of contact for accommodation requests. The parties will also provide disability etiquette training to caucus volunteers to ensure that Iowans with disabilities are treated with respect and dignity. DRI will be working with the parties to further provide assistance to local caucus chairs, and to reliably test new developments.

However, much more needs to be done. To raise awareness, Iowans with disabilities will be promoting caucus accessibility through a statewide billboard campaign, which starts today and runs through August. In tandem, until February 3, DRI will be promoting awareness through #CaucusAccess on social media. DRI will also be seeking the support of all presidential candidates to ensure that the caucuses are accessible and inclusive. To show your support for making the caucuses accessible to all Iowans, please sign our petition at https://drivoting.org.

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Disability Rights Iowa aims to defend and promote the human and legal rights of Iowans who have disabilities and mental illness. DRI promotes safety, opportunity, access, and self-determination for all Iowans. To learn more about caucus access, visit https://drivoting.org.








Ed. Note (Aug. 12) - DRI executive director Jane Hudson and communications director Anne Matte have been attending the the Des Moines Register Soapbox at 2019 Iowa State Fair and have thus far questioned seven candidates about ensuring accessibility of the caucuses.  Matte provided the following observations:

So far this year, DRI has met with both the Iowa Republican Party and the Iowa Democratic Party to discuss ways to make the caucuses as accessible as possible. In addition, we have sent letters detailing our campaign and the need for accessible caucuses to every candidate, and we are staking out events, like the soapbox, to ask candidates if they will pressure their party to make the Iowa caucuses accessible.
 
We have 16 billboards up around the state of Iowa, and we are working on a digital campaign to run from now until the caucuses to urge people to sign our petition to support accessible caucuses. Once we reach a significant amount of signatures, we will send the petition to the parties to show that Iowans support an accessible caucus. Our campaign was covered in The Gazette, and we sent our press release to other reporters who have shown interest.
 
All of our voting and caucus resources are on our voting site, drivoting.org. We have resources for caucus goers, with profiles of each candidate and their disability stances; campaigns, with resources to make their events and materials accessible; and for caucus staffers, with resources to help them make their caucus site accessible and welcoming to people with disabilities.


Hudson said the billboard buy cost about $16,000:
 

Billboard Locations by Date:
7/15
    •    Muscatine (HWY 61)
    •    Mechanicsville (US 30)
7/22
    •    Cedar Rapids (727 2nd Av.)
    •    Davenport (4800 Welcome Way)
    •    Bettendorf (3820 State St.)
    •    Davenport (1324 Harrison St.)
    •    Des Moines (Indianola Rd. and 7th)
    •    Oskaloosa (HWY 92 and HWY 23)
    •    Ottumwa (Richmond Av. and Church St.)
7/29
    •    Des Moines (Grand Av. And 28th St.)
    •    Des Moines (Ingersoll Av. And 244th St.)
    •    Des Moines (63rd St. and Grand Av.)
    •    Des Moines (Douglas Av. and 64th St.)
    •    Osceola (HWY 69 and HWY 34)
8/4
    •    Ames (HWY 69 and HWY 30)
8/11
    •    Adel (HWY 169 and HWY 6)

(Each billboard runs for four weeks after its posted date).

Texts of letters sent out to the campaigns in latter part of July:

Dear President Trump,

DRI is the congressionally mandated protection and advocacy entity for people with disabilities in Iowa. To that end, we have been working with the Republican Party of Iowa to ensure that the Iowa caucuses are accessible.

DRI has met with the Republican Party of Iowa to discuss ways to make their caucus more accessible. They have pledged to look into adding a section to their website for caucus goers to request an accommodation and have pledged to utilize a one-minute disability etiquette video for their volunteers and staff to watch. This is great progress but more progress can be made in order to ensure that all Republicans in Iowa are able to caucus. Limiting caucus participation is not acceptable, and is a misstep when serving voters with disabilities, the working class, veterans, and others. It is not right to deny access or count any American as less than their worth.

Voters with disabilities and their families have a true stake in the political process, as many decisions impact them. Nineteen percent of the registered voting public has a disability, and we’ve spoken to Iowans who haven’t been able to caucus because of access barriers. Those barriers stop them from having a say in how their lives are governed. This negatively impacts your campaign because these voters wouldn’t be able to caucus for anyone, including you. As the incumbent, it is in your campaign’s best interest to demand that the RPI make the Iowa caucuses accessible.

In order to ensure the best voter turnout, your campaign must reach out to the RPI to demand accessible caucuses be made a reality. The RPI must include people with disabilities in planning. If not, they are bound to miss vital access solutions. If you agree, and would like to join our efforts to encourage both parties to make the caucuses accessible, please visit drivoting.org to sign our ‘Not just first in the nation, but best in the nation’ petition.

Sincerely,

Jane Hudson
Executive Director
Disability Rights Iowa

Dear Candidate Biden,

DRI is the congressionally mandated protection and advocacy entity for people with disabilities in Iowa. To that end, we have been trying to work with the Iowa Democratic Party to ensure that the Iowa caucuses are accessible.
   
Despite plans for a virtual caucus, the IDP has yet to publicize any concrete proposals for access. Empty mentions of remote voting have been put forth, but not tested. In addition, the virtual caucus has a 10 percent participation cap that, if exceeded, lower the value of virtual votes. Limiting caucus participation is not acceptable, and is a misstep when serving voters with disabilities, single parents, the working class, and others. It is not right to deny access or count any American as less than their worth.

Voters with disabilities and their families have a true stake in the political process, as many decisions impact them. Nineteen percent of the registered voting public has a disability, and we’ve spoken to Iowans who haven’t been able to caucus because of access barriers. Those barriers stop them from having a say in how their lives are governed. This negatively impacts your campaign because these voters wouldn’t be able to caucus for anyone, including you. Your extensive work on behalf of people with disabilities – supporting the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act – makes it clear that disability rights are important to your campaign. It is in your campaign’s best interest to demand that the IDP make the Iowa caucuses accessible.

In order to ensure the best voter turnout, your campaign must reach out to the IDP to demand accessible caucuses be made a reality. The IDP must include people with disabilities in planning. If not, they are bound to miss vital access solutions. If you agree, and would like to join our efforts to encourage both parties to make the caucuses accessible, please visit https://drivoting.org/ to sign our ‘Not just first in the nation, but best in the nation’ petition.

Sincerely,

Jane Hudson
Executive Director
Disability Rights Iowa