Republican Eddie Andrews, a state legislator from Johnston who’s running for governor, says it’s time to end the 20 day period of “early voting” in Iowa elections.
Iowans have been voting in person at county auditors’ offices since May 13, plus there’s voting by mail during Iowa’s early voting window. “I’m a fan of ‘Election Day’ not ‘Election Season,’” Andrews said. “We already have four seasons. We don’t need a fifth.”
Andrews has identified 17 other priority issues he’d pursue if elected governor, including banning the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines and the eventual elimination of property taxes in Iowa. “Let’s get busy,” Andrews said during a recent interview on KSOU in Sioux Center. “That’s my motto.”
Mental health reform is also on what Andrews refers to as his “laundry list” of priorities. Andrews became an advocate for changes in Iowa’s mental health system seven years ago after his adoptive son died in Las Vegas. “Great kid, macho, all those things that go along with all boy. When we adopted him…he had some mental health challenges and we ended up losing him and along the way I got to see how bad our mental health care system is,” Andrews said, “so that’s what got me into politics.”
Andrews was first elected to the Iowa House in 2020. He’s also a bilingual pastor who served congregations where English, Spanish and Swahili are spoken. The other candidates seeking the Republican Party’s 2026 nomination for governor are Randy Feenstra, Zach Lahn, Brad Sherman and Adam Steen.
