LULAC sues to remove ‘English-only Law’ for voting materials in Iowa

KWQC Staff

KWQC 6 Davenport (subscription required)

Oct 29, 2021

LULAC Iowa Spanish Access Lawsuit

DES MOINES, Iowa (KWQC) - The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) of Iowa filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s “English-only Law” on Wednesday, suing Iowa for failure to provide non-English election materials to voters with limited English proficiency.

The lawsuit focuses on the exception to the law passed in 2008, that allows translated materials if they are “necessary to secure the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America or the Constitution of the State of Iowa.”

“The right to vote is clearly guaranteed by our state constitution, the U.S. Constitution and federal law,” explained Nick Salazar, LULAC Iowa State Director. “Congress has already determined that native-language voting materials are needed to secure voting rights for voters with limited English-language skills. Legally the English-only Law doesn’t apply to voting materials.”