While the people wanting to be president take center stage, look to the side of the stage for someone equally important to many in the audience.

There's often an American Sign Language interpreter working to match the candidate's cadence, emphasis, jokes and speeches for attendees who are deaf or hard of hearing.

"If you interpret it, they will come," said Joan Locke, an American Sign Language interpreter with Cedar Rapids-based Hands Up Communication. "... You provide access, you open that door to the deaf community, and they will be there. They want to be a part of this process."

Nationally, the Democratic presidential campaigns have spent more than $54,000 on interpreting and translation services from July 1 to Sept. 30, according to a Des Moines Register analysis of campaign finance filings. More than $8,000 of that was paid to Iowa-based firms, according to the filings.

The reports may underestimate total spending: National firms can subcontract out with local interpreters, and interpreting services may be included in general event expenditures listed on FEC filings.

There are no clear estimates of how many people communicate with American Sign Language, according to research by Gallaudet University, a private university in Washington, D.C., for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. But the population of people with hearing loss is not small: The National Institutes of Health estimates that between 2 and 3 of every 1,000 children in the United States are born with hearing loss in one or both ears.

David Legg, president of the Cedar Rapids Association for the Deaf, who is deaf himself, said he has often gone to political events and found no interpreters. The lack of interpreters makes him feel like he can't take part in the political process, he said.

"There's no reason we should have to tell them to have an interpreter for deaf people. Every time, they should just find someone to interpret for the deaf people," Legg said through an interpreter.

He cited former U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, an Iowan and advocate for the deaf community, as an example politicians should follow. Harkin, whose brother was deaf, spearheaded the American with Disabilities Act and made sure to have ASL interpreters at his public appearances.

Campaigns are placing more emphasis on accessibility

Locke and Catherine Crist, the disability caucus chair for the Iowa Democratic Party, both said they've seen a marked emphasis from campaigns this cycle on accessibility. The Iowa Democratic Party is also introducing satellite caucuses next year to give people who would have trouble making it to precinct caucus sites an opportunity to participate.

► More: Will the Iowa Democratic Party's satellite caucus plan allay disability advocate frustrations?

About one in five voters self-identifies as having a disability, Crist said, and a majority of voters say they are allies of the community or have a friend or family member who is disabled.

"Campaigns and candidates are starting to recognize this is a group of people they really need to be paying attention to," Crist said. "It wasn't because people didn't care, but because people didn't know or realize."

She said she encourages campaigns to include what steps they're taking to encourage accessibility at events in their promotion: Will there be real-time translation services? Will there be expedited entrances for people with trouble standing or waiting long times? She also urges campaigns to ask if potential attendees need additional accommodations.

People with disabilities often don't risk the time, money and energy to go to political events if they're not sure they'll be able to participate, Crist said. Normalizing accommodations shows campaigns are taking the issues seriously, she said.

"It's an improper question to ask, 'How many people need ASL?' " Crist said. "We should never require a number from the minority to the majority to accommodate. We never do it for anything else; it's a civil right. The cost? It's the cost of doing business," she said.

Crist, in her dual role as chair of the Accessibility for All Action Fund, is co-hosting a presidential forum Nov. 2 in Cedar Rapids to specifically ask Democratic presidential hopefuls about what they'll do for people with disabilities. Entrepreneur Andrew Yang, South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Peter Buttigieg and U.S. Sens. Cory Booker and Amy Klobuchar are slated to attend.

Sanders, Booker spent the most on interpretative and translation services

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders' campaign spent more than $23,000 specifically earmarked for interpreter services from July 1 to Sept. 30, according to FEC filings. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker's campaign spent just shy of $11,000 during the three-month period.

Misty Rebik, Sanders' Iowa state director, said the campaign organizes interpretation services at the same time as it's seeking event space.

They likewise seek real-time translation when holding events in areas likely to have people who speak other languages, such as Spanish or Arabic, as a way of making people who speak those languages feel comfortable attending, she said. Non-native English speakers or members of the deaf community may be able to understand English or read lips well enough that they can follow along, but that's doesn't welcome them as much as active engagement, Rebik said.

She also called it a "deep reflection" of Sanders' political philosophy and policies and trying "to create the biggest, widest, most inclusive movement we can."

Tess Seger, a spokesperson for Booker's campaign, echoed the sentiment, saying accessibility is one of the campaign's core values. Booker regularly asks the audience to applaud interpreters, she said.

Interpreters have a code of conduct that prohibits them from putting their spin on political events, said Locke, an interpreter. She tries to familiarize herself with politicians' speeches and mannerisms so she can interpret their words and emotions as faithfully as possible. American Sign Language is its own language, with a different set of grammatical rules than English.

Locke, who has interpreted for former President Barack Obama, said society is starting to change so that interpretation is expected.

"When we get to a point — and I don't think we're that far — when we get to a point where accessibility is not an afterthought, where a deaf person does not have to say, 'Pretty please, can I go participate in the political arena?' I think we're going to have a larger, more informed voting base," Locke said.

How much presidential campaigns spent on interpretation

Sanders : $23,302.65

Booker : $10,798.81

Warren : $5,550.64

Harris : $5,099.6

Buttigieg : $4,530.08

Biden : $1,895

Yang : $1,712.48

Steyer : $670.28

O'Rourke : $544.9

Williamson: $110

SOURCE: Federal Election Commission filings for campaign spending from July 1 to Sept. 30. Includes all spending described as for interpreter or translation services. Some payments for the services may be folded into larger event expenses, without a separate line-item.

Nick Coltrain is a politics and data reporter for the Register. Reach him at ncoltrain@registermedia.com or at 515-284-8361. Your subscription makes work like this possible. Subscribe today at DesMoinesRegister.com/Deal.