DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate says Iowa residents with a state driver’s license or photo ID will be able to register online to vote by Jan. 1, ahead of the original November goal. The Iowa Voter Registration Commission approved in January a rule allowing qualified voters to visit a website where they can input the numbers on their state-issued driver’s license or photo ID to register.

Information from the Iowa Department of Transportation, including the voter’s signature, will be imported into voter registration forms and automatically forwarded to the state’s voter database. Voters without a license or ID or those without internet service may still register by filling out paper applications. Pate estimates 93 percent of eligible voters can use the online system for voter registration.