Bobby Kaufmann – Iowa State Representative
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Bobby Kaufmann – Iowa State Representative

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Bobby Kaufmann – Iowa State Representative

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Category: State Legislator
Role: Iowa State Representative, District 73 (Wilton); House Floor Manager and Co-Sponsor for Iowa SF 413 (2021)
Priority: P1 (House floor manager for comprehensive voter suppression legislation; rapid passage with minimal review)

## Role

Bobby Kaufmann, a Republican state representative from Wilton representing Iowa House District 73, served as House Floor Manager and co-sponsor of Senate File 413, Iowa’s comprehensive 2021 voting restrictions legislation. As floor manager, Kaufmann was responsible for shepherding the bill through the House chamber and coordinating with Senate floor manager Roby Smith. SF 413 became law on March 8, 2021, less than three weeks after introduction, with provisions taking effect January 1, 2022.

## Background

Kaufmann has served in the Iowa House of Representatives since 2013 and is known as a conservative legislator aligned with Republican leadership priorities. His selection as House floor manager for SF 413 reflected his reliability on party-priority legislation and his ability to navigate bills through the chamber efficiently. His role in the bill’s rapid passage made him a central figure in Iowa’s post-2020 election legislative response.

## Documented Actions

### 1. House Floor Management and Co-Sponsorship of SF 413 (February-March 2021)

Evidence: Kaufmann served as House floor manager and was listed as a co-sponsor of SF 413, coordinating with Senate floor manager Roby Smith to ensure the bill’s rapid passage through both chambers. The bill moved from introduction (February 18) through both chambers to the governor’s signature (March 8) in less than three weeks—a compressed timeline that limited public input and detailed review.

As House floor manager, Kaufmann controlled debate on the House floor, determined which amendments would be considered, and coordinated timing with Republican leadership to ensure smooth passage. His floor management role was critical to maintaining the rapid timeline that limited opposition efforts and stakeholder feedback.

SF 413 imposed numerous voting restrictions including:

– Shortened absentee ballot request and return periods

– More aggressive voter list maintenance and purging procedures

– Reduced early voting days

– New identification requirements for various voting processes

– Restrictions on ballot drop box placement and access

Kaufmann defended these provisions as enhancing election integrity, despite Iowa’s 2020 election having proceeded successfully with record turnout and no documented systemic fraud or security failures that would necessitate the restrictions.

Sources: Iowa Capital Dispatch, February-March 2021; FastDemocracy bill tracking; Iowa Legislature records

Pattern: House floor management of comprehensive restrictions; rapid passage limiting scrutiny; co-sponsorship demonstrating personal commitment to bill

### 2. House Vote and Cross-Chamber Coordination (March 2021)

Evidence: Kaufmann voted in favor of SF 413 when it passed the Iowa House along party lines, with all Republicans voting for the bill and all Democrats voting against. His role as floor manager combined with his co-sponsorship and affirmative vote demonstrated multilayered commitment to the legislation—from conceptual support (co-sponsorship) through procedural control (floor management) to final passage (affirmative vote).

The cross-chamber coordination between Kaufmann (House) and Smith (Senate) ensured the bill moved quickly through both chambers without becoming bogged down in amendments or extended debate. This coordination reflected Republican legislative leadership’s prioritization of voting restrictions following the 2020 election.

Sources: Iowa Legislature voting records; bill tracking

Pattern: Party-line support; cross-chamber coordination for rapid passage; multiple roles demonstrating commitment (co-sponsor, floor manager, yes vote)

### 3. Defense of Bill Against Voter Suppression Allegations (2021)

Evidence: Throughout the legislative process, Kaufmann and other Republican supporters defended SF 413 against characterizations as voter suppression, arguing it balanced access with security. However, the bill consistently restricted voting methods (absentee voting, early voting) without expanding any voting access, and no evidence was presented of Iowa election security problems requiring these restrictions.

Iowa Democrats and voting rights advocates argued the bill would particularly harm elderly voters who relied on absentee voting, students who used early voting, and rural Iowans with limited transportation options. Kaufmann’s defense relied on abstract “election integrity” concerns rather than documented problems, following the pattern established by Republican legislators nationwide in 2021.

The bill’s actual provisions—shorter absentee periods, aggressive list maintenance, reduced early voting—demonstrated that its effect would be to restrict, not expand, voting access. Kaufmann’s framing as “balance” masked this reality.

Sources: Iowa Capital Dispatch coverage; legislative testimony and debate records

Pattern: “Election integrity” and “balance” framing masking restrictions; dismissal of disenfranchisement concerns; abstract fraud claims without evidence

Pattern Analysis

Kaufmann exemplifies the public-corruption-ombudsman skill’s “voter suppression” category through his floor management role that enabled rapid House passage of comprehensive voting restrictions. His profile demonstrates how House floor managers work in coordination with Senate counterparts (Roby Smith) to advance voter suppression legislation quickly and efficiently. The compressed three-week timeline from introduction to signature—which Kaufmann helped orchestrate—limited public scrutiny and stakeholder input, a pattern seen in multiple states’ 2021 voter suppression efforts.

Related profiles: roby-smith-profile (IA SF 413 Senate floor manager), andrew-murr-profile (TX SB 1 conference chair), bryan-hughes-profile (TX SB 1 author), dennis-baxley-profile (FL SB 90 author), kim-reynolds-profile (IA governor)

Related skills: voting-rights-law-expert, fourteenth-amendment-legal-expert (equal protection), fifth-amendment-legal-expert (due process), tenth-amendment-legal-expert (state election administration)

Severity Assessment

Immediate harm: Moderate – SF 413 restricted absentee and early voting; affected thousands of Iowa voters, particularly elderly and rural residents Democratic erosion: Moderate – House floor management enabling rapid passage; restrictions without evidence of problems; cross-chamber coordination to limit scrutiny Authoritarian marker: Rapid passage limiting opposition; legislative response to high turnout; dismissal of accessibility concerns; compressed timeline preventing stakeholder input

Accountability Status

Current status: Serving Iowa State Representative; SF 413 in effect since January 1, 2022 Legal exposure: None; legislation subject to potential challenges but Kaufmann not individually named Public accountability: Criticized by Iowa Democrats and voting rights organizations for floor management role in rapid passage; praised by Iowa Republicans for legislative efficiency

Cross-References

Skills: public-corruption-ombudsman, voting-rights-law-expert, fourteenth-amendment-legal-expert, fifth-amendment-legal-expert, tenth-amendment-legal-expert

Related profiles: roby-smith-profile, andrew-murr-profile, bryan-hughes-profile, dennis-baxley-profile, barry-fleming-profile

Topics: Iowa SF 413, House floor manager, voter suppression legislation, absentee ballot restrictions, voter list purging, early voting reduction, compressed legislative timeline, cross-chamber coordination, 2021 Iowa Legislature, post-2020 election restrictions

Investigative trail pointers (public records)

Education only — verify independently. Absence of hits is not proof.

Channel Starting points
Federal courts CourtListener / PACER party and attorney searches (spelling variants)
Campaign finance FEC + OpenSecrets for committees and donors tied to documented roles
Corporate / LLC State secretary of state; OpenCorporates for cross-border shells from reporting
Sanctions / PEP OpenSanctions when international business context is already sourced
Contracts / grants USAspending.gov for named entities from investigations

Use public-records-research-specialist, corporate-intelligence-investigator, and public-corruption-ombudsman evidence tiers.

Factual correction requests: If you believe information in this profile is incorrect, please contact factcheck@patriot.university with your name (optional), the specific claim, and any supporting documentation. We review all submissions and correct verified errors promptly.

For Trump Supporters: Questions Worth Considering

Bobby Kaufmann served as House floor manager for Iowa Senate File 413, the state’s 2021 voting restrictions legislation. As floor manager, he controlled House debate and managed the timeline. The bill went from introduction on February 18, 2021 to Governor Reynolds’s signature on March 8 — less than three weeks. Iowa’s 2020 election had produced record turnout with no documented systemic fraud or security failures. The bill passed in less than three weeks, restricting absentee voting deadlines, cutting early voting days, and increasing voter list purges — despite no documented problem with the existing system that required these restrictions in that timeframe.

Here’s a question worth sitting with: SF 413 was introduced, moved through both chambers, and signed into law in under three weeks. That timeline means very limited committee review, very limited public testimony, and very limited time for Iowans to understand what was in the bill and contact their legislators about it. Compressed legislative timelines that limit public input are a pattern, not an accident — they are a feature of how legislation moves when the sponsors know it would face organized opposition if people had time to review it. What does a three-week timeline from introduction to signature tell you about how confident the bill’s sponsors were that the legislation would hold up under extended public scrutiny?

A second question: Iowa’s 2020 election ran successfully with record turnout. Kaufmann defended the restrictions as enhancing “election integrity,” but presented no evidence of Iowa election security problems requiring those specific restrictions. The bill’s actual effects — shorter absentee deadlines, fewer early voting days, more aggressive voter list purges — all reduced access rather than expanding it. If the goal were genuinely to make elections more secure while keeping them accessible, what would a bill that achieved both look like? Does SF 413 look like that bill?

Sources

  • Iowa Capital Dispatch: “Senate passes major election bill one week after its introduction” (February 23, 2021)
  • FastDemocracy: Bill tracking for Iowa SF 413 (2021-2022 legislative session)
  • Iowa Legislature: SF 413 bill information, voting records, and floor debate archives
  • BillTrack50: IA SF413 tracking and legislative history

Last Updated: May 11, 2026
Profile Status: Active monitoring – currently serving
Next Review: Quarterly

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