Letter to the Editor: County Auditor Ben Steines has always completed his duties with the highest moral character and integrity

"With all of the information and misinformation flying around regarding the 'now famous' 29 absentee ballots in the race for Iowa House District 55, it's time to make some things perfectly clear.

The character and integrity of County Auditor Ben Steines is beyond question.  I understand that since he serves as the commissioner of elections in our county, it's easy to blame him when things like this happen.  He has repeatedly made it known to the powers that be that issues like this happen every election and they need to be fixed.  He has followed the law each and every time to exact specifications.  He takes the responsibility of making sure elections are handled impartially and with complete integrity very seriously.  Ask anyone who has served as an election poll worker in this county and they will tell you the exact same thing, Republican, Democrat, or Third Party. 

Carl Haakenstad, who admits to being a 'committed partisan Democrat' claims that Ben is taking away the rights of 29 people to vote because Ben is a Republican.  Carl says if Ben 'has a different reason, I would love to hear it.'   I've got an idea for you Carl--call the Auditor at his office!  The office is open from 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Mondays through Fridays to answer your questions!  Even fellow 'committed partisan Democrats' who've had frustrations with this process and who have talked to Ben about it realize that the issue isn't with our County Auditor, it's with how state law is written.   Unfortunately, it's going to take a court case to get everything figured out.  Maybe that will finally be the impetus the legislature needs to get this right.

You can disagree with the absentee ballot laws and how they are written.  You can disagree with how State of Iowa law says that ballots that were received without a postmark after election day are to be handled.  You can disagree with how the legal process plays out.  But you can not disagree when I tell you County Auditor Ben Steines has always completed his duties with the highest moral character and integrity.   Insulting him and attacking his character in a public way only shows your true character."