In each area of the party we all do things to encourage registration. Right now we've been doing a huge absentee ballot drive. We also have helped the top 15 to 20 counties get off the ground as far as getting people to register and setting up the polls. A lot of that also involves phone banks where we can call people and make them aware of what's going on. For new voters, we've reached out to them on our Web site.
People can sign on and print registration forms.
This is a battleground state, so registration is very important. The Republican Party of Iowa has been focusing on trying to get young people to vote. Bakker said the commission has focused on the youth as well. Over the past 40 years, voter participation has steadily declined, especially among young voters, Bakker said. Voter turnout for the 1996 general election was one of the worst ever with more than 100 million eligible voters staying away from the polls.