On November 7, 2006, Democrats made impressive gains in state legislative contests all around the country, including in the key presidential swing state of Iowa, where Democrats picked up control of both the state House and Senate, in addition to holding on to the governorship, giving the Democrats their first legislative trifecta in the state since 1964. Already, we're beginning to see the fruits of this success, including the enactment of an election-day registration bill this week. The Associated Press has the story.

Iowans will be able to register to vote on Election Day under a bill signed Tuesday by Governor Culver.

Culver said same day voter registration will allow thousands of Iowans to participate in elections.

According to The Des Moines Register, "Supporters of the legislation predict voter turnout will go up by as much as 5 percent" -- a claim that seems entirely plausible (if, perhaps, understatedly) given the study (.doc) that showed that 2004 turnout in states with election-day registration was 12 percent higher than in those states without the provision.

This was not the only electoral reform passed recently by the newly-Democratic Iowa state legislature. Dan Gearino of the Sioux City Journal repored last week that a bill mandating a paper backup for the states' electronic voting machines was sent to the desk of Democratic Governor Chet Culver.

The bill requiring a paper backup for electronic voting machines passed 45-5. Sen. Mike Connolly, D-Dubuque, said the measure will assure Iowans that their votes won't get lost if a machine malfunctions. "That's what the citizens of Iowa want in the voting process," he said.

While such moves might not garner the type of notice that other state-level legislation relating to issues of education or healthcare might receive -- let alone legislation passed by the Congress on Iraq and the minimum wage and everything in between -- these moves by the Democratic legislature in Iowa will greatly enhance confidence in the state's capacity to hold free and fair elections and will, what's more, ensure that even more of the state's residents can participate in the political process. And while experts are loath to predict how this might affect future elections in the state -- including on the presidential level, which has been extremely competitive in recent years -- it is has been found that those most likely to use the same-day registration provision are "naturalized citizens, Latinos, African Americans, people ages 18 to 25, and people who have moved within the last six months", many of which tend to favor Democrats.