FILE - Rep. Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa, speaks during hearing March 29, 2022, in Washington. House Republicans are touting their debt limit package as a first step toward fiscal restraint. They say it's past time for Congress to reduce the swelling deficits that they say are threatening the fiscal health of the country. But a group of Midwestern Republicans went to Speaker Kevin McCarthy's office this week on a mission to preserve billions of dollars in federal support for biofuels and ethanol.(Rod Lamkey/Pool Photo via AP, File)

The integrity of our elections and the power of our vote are vital to the health of our democracy. The United States remains a beacon of hope and promise because the people – not politicians – determine the outcome of elections with their voice and their vote.

We have witnessed this firsthand in Iowa. Through common sense reforms, our elections are the gold standard – conducted with the utmost integrity, precision, and speed. This exceptional caliber must serve as the roadmap for all fifty states to ensure that our elections are free, fair, and transparent.

That’s why, I recently helped introduce – alongside the House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil – the American Confidence in Elections Act, which would replicate Iowa’s success at the federal level while making it easier to vote and harder to cheat.

Among many important reforms, this legislation would strengthen access for election observers to promote accountability, require annual voter list maintenance, and stop unsolicited mailing of ballots to unsecure lists. It would also require voter ID laws nationwide and prohibit illegal immigrants from voting in elections. Only American citizens with valid IDs should be allowed to vote in our elections – period.

This package also includes legislation that I sponsored – the VOTERS Act – which requires the Election Assistance Commission Standards Board to confer with states and local communities to assemble and distribute best practices for administering federal elections. These practices include voter signature verification processes, voter roll maintenance, election observer access rules, poll worker recruitment, post-election audits, and unofficial ballot counting procedures.

By including election officials from Iowa in the national conversation, we can better disseminate procedures that have worked well in our state and encourage other states to implement proven solutions that have secured our elections and protected the integrity of every vote. Americans should be confident that their vote counts and our elections are conducted with absolute transparency and accountability.

I am confident that the American Confidence in Elections Act will restore confidence in our elections, empower the American people to exercise their right to vote, and offer important reforms to our electoral processes. In Congress, I will continue to work with my colleagues to secure our elections and ensure that every legal vote in every county in every state counts.

We are government together, and your thoughts and opinions matter to me. Please contact my office at Feenstra.House.Gov or by phone at 202-225-4426 if I can ever be of assistance. I am proud to represent our families, farmers, main street businesses, and rural communities in Congress.

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Randy Feenstra, a Republican from Hull, represents Iowa’s Fourth District in the U.S. House.