Utah

Articles about voting issues in Utah.

Hatch Forced Into Primary At Utah GOP Convention - 32 votes short | International Business Times

Apr 232012

Veteran U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah will face a Republican primary fight after delegates to a party convention on Saturday denied him the nomination, forcing him into an election with a Tea Party-backed challenger who finished second. Hatch, 78, won the day over nine challengers, but narrowly fell short of reaching the 60 percent of the vote needed in a pairing against his number two challenger, Dan Liljenquist, to win the nomination outright and avoid the primary, Reuters reported. Heavily Republican Utah last elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate more than four decades ago, so the Republican nominee is usually considered the presumptive winner of the general election. The nominating convention held in Sandy, Utah, marked a test for the continuing strength of Tea Party activists, who played a decisive role nationally in the 2010 mid-term elections and helped unseat then-Republican Senator Bob Bennett of Utah. In a final delegate vote on Saturday, Hatch took 59.2 percent of the votes to 40.8 percent for Liljenquist, a former state senator with a Tea Party following. Hatch was only 32 delegates short of getting the required 60 percent vote that would have allowed him to avoid a primary contest. A total of 3,908 delegates participated. In the first round, eight challengers were eliminated. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: Dan Liljenquist, delegates, Orrin Hatch, primary

Candidate Threatens Lawsuit Over Use of Electronic Voting at Utah GOP Convention | KCPW

Apr 182012

The State Republican Party could have a lawsuit on their hands. Brian Jenkins, who is running against U.S. Congressman Jason Chaffetz, says he is upset about the possibility of electronic voting being used at the upcoming Republican state convention. Jenkins says the electronic method can be manipulated and he’s worried about the inability to check the votes after they are cast. “I actually think that if we can verify, there won’t be any skullduggery,there won’t be any kind of cheating if there is true verification,” Jenkins says. ” But if there is not verification the temptation to alter the outcome is almost irresistible.”

Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: delegates, electronic voting, Jason Chaffetz

Vote-by-mail effort in Utah gets a boost in the House | The Salt Lake Tribune

Mar 082012

Utah could move toward voting by mail in upcoming elections under a bill that passed the House and is awaiting action in the Senate. HB172, sponsored by Rep. Steve Eliason, R-Sandy, would allow county clerks to conduct voting by mail, if they choose. It also directs the Lieutenant Governor’s Office to study how the state could move to vote by mail by 2015. Eliason noted that Utah has some of the nation’s worst voter-participation rates and said that studies have shown that vote-by-mail programs could increase turnout by as much as 40 percent. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: Vote by Mail, voter turnout

State could switch to vote-by-mail system | The Salt Lake Tribune

Feb 282012

Utah lawmakers started a process Monday that could switch Utah to a mostly vote-by-mail system by 2015, hoping it will improve voter turnout that in 2010 was second-worst in the nation. The House Government Operations Committee unanimously approved HB172 by Rep. Steve Eliason, R-Sandy, and sent it to the full House. It would require a study on what is needed to make such a switch, which Eliason said he hopes may occur by 2015. “States and other political subdivisions that vote entirely by mail have a much higher voter participation rate,” about 15 to 20 percentage points higher, Eliason said. “Oregon went to vote-by-mail 10 years ago, and Washington was a bit more recent … and they typically lead the nation in voter turnout.” Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: absentee voting, Vote by Mail

Democrats, GOP spar over voter registration bill | The Salt Lake Tribune

Jan 252012

Federal law prohibits removing voters from registration rolls for failing to vote. But Republicans on Wednesday endorsed a possible end run around that — one that Democrats, the ACLU and some good-government groups protested as illegal and likely to lower voter turnout. The House Political Subdivisions Committee endorsed HB253 on a 6-4 vote, mostly along party lines, and sent it to the full House. It would allow removing voters from rolls if they miss four consecutive general elections and fail to respond to a notice mailed to them after the second missed election. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: ACLU, voter registration

Navajo Nation sues Utah county over voting issues | Deseret News

Jan 162012

The Navajo Nation filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against San Juan County, claiming its three established voting districts violate the constitutional rights of tribal members living in Utah. The lawsuit filed in Salt Lake City’s U.S. District Court asks a federal judge for an injunction that would force county commission district boundaries to be redrawn ahead of the November election. No hearings have been scheduled in the case. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: Navajo, redistricting

Navajos sue San Juan County over voter rights | The Salt Lake Tribune

Jan 142012

The Navajo Nation has filed suit in U.S. District Court for Utah, alleging that San Juan County is attempting to keep Navajos from capturing a second seat on the county’s three-member commission by failing to redraw voting districts to reflect the 2010 U.S. Census. The suit, filed Thursday in Salt Lake City, alleges that San Juan County is in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and in violation of the 1973 Voting Rights Act by ensuring that non-Indian voters hold majorities in two of the county’s three voting districts. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: Navajo voters, redistricting, Voting Rights Act

Election recount reveals ballot scanner malfunctions in Provo District 1 race | Deseret News

Nov 252011

Paper ballots in the Municipal Council District 1 race will be counted by hand Wednesday because of a technical problem that may have resulted in a miscount in a very close race.

The unofficial vote tally after Election Day separated winner Gary Winterton from Bonnie Morrow by just nine votes — 804 to 795. Morrow asked for a recount, which was taking place Tuesday when county election officials concluded they had machine problems. ”The numbers were varying too much,” said Utah County Chief Deputy Clerk/Auditor Scott Hogensen. “It became obvious the machines weren’t counting things correctly.” Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: Dominion Voting Systems, paper ballot, Provo, recount, Utah County

Provo city council ballot recount suffers technical malfunction | Daily Herald

Nov 252011

Provo residents will have to wait a little longer to know if Gary Winterton defeated Bonnie Morrow in the recent Municipal Council race.
County officials recounted the ballots cast for the Provo Municipal Council District 1 Tuesday morning, but the discrepancy between the recount total and the total from election night became so large that officials stopped the counting process. There will be a recount by hand at 10 a.m. today in the Utah County Commission conference room in the Utah County Administration Building, 100 E. Center St.

“They did a recount and the numbers came out so extremely in favor of the opposite candidate that there appears to be something wrong with the machine,” said Helen Anderson, spokeswoman for Provo city. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: hand count, Provo, recount, Utah County

Voting malfunction: Machine causes problems for Provo council race | ksl.com

Nov 232011

Paper ballots in the Municipal Council District 1 race will be counted by hand Wednesday because of a technical problem that may have resulted in a miscount in a very close race. The unofficial vote tally after Election Day separated winner Gary Winterton from Bonnie Morrow by just nine votes — 804 to 795. Morrow asked for a recount, which was taking place Tuesday when county election officials concluded they had machine problems.

“The numbers were varying too much,” said Utah County Chief Deputy Clerk/Auditor Scott Hogensen. “It became obvious the machines weren’t counting things correctly.” The county was bringing in technical support from the machines’ vendor, Dominion Voting Systems. The scanners read paper ballots and feed results into computer software that totals the results. Read More »

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Utah 2 Responses » Topics: Dominion Voting Systems, Provo, recount, Utah County, voting machine malfunction

38 Utah cities and towns cancel municipal election | ksl.com

Oct 292011
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Only three candidates filed for three available City Council positions in the Nov. 8 election. ”In a small city sometimes you beg for candidates,” said Carolyn Jorgensen, the city’s clerk/treasurer. So Castle Dale took advantage of a new state law that allows cities and towns to cancel municipal elections if it would not affect the outcome. Altogether, 38 Utah cities and towns have cancelled their municipal election for the same reason.

State Elections Director Mark Thomas estimates savings to the mostly smaller communities will total almost $250,000. Castle Dale hasn’t calculated how much its savings will be, but the cost of holding an election where the outcome is already known is what led communities to ask Lt. Gov. Greg Bell, the state’s top elections official, to push for a provision that would allow municipalities to cancel those elections. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: election costs, elections law, Mark Thomas, municipal elections, write-in

Five cities cancel November elections thanks to new law | Deseret News

Oct 012011

Five Utah cities are taking advantage of a new law that allows them to cancel municipal elections when the number of candidates for at-large seats does not exceed the number of positions available. Providence and Cornish in Cache County, Fielding in Box Elder County, Marriott-Slaterville in Weber County and Beaver in Beaver County all fit that profile and have chosen not to hold November elections.

Providence had four candidates file for three City Council positions. But then incumbent David Low withdrew, leaving incumbents Bill Bagley and John Russel and newcomer Ralph Call on the ballot. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: election costs, municipal elections, write-in

County, state ponder election changes to reduce costs | standard.net

Sep 192011

A municipal primary that may eliminate only one candidate from the field in setting the November ballot could cost a city as much as $50,000.

But other than being able to advance candidates to a November general election through a nominating convention — a process that Fruit Heights uses — the state election code offers little flexibility for cities trying to reduce election costs.

However, efforts are being made at the county level to consolidate municipalities’ polling locations, and there are rumblings at the state Capitol that lawmakers during the 2012 legislative session may look at changes in the state’s election code. ”Cost is certainly an issue,” State Director of Elections Mark Thomas said of lawmakers’ interest in revisiting the code. “But it shouldn’t be the No. 1 issue.” Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: election costs, Mark Thomas, municipal elections

GOP leader Nelson seeks election overhaul - recommends instant runoff voting | The Salt Lake Tribune

Jul 212011

The vice chairman of Utah Republican Party wants state lawmakers to study an “instant runoff voting” system that he says could prevent third-party candidates from “spoiling” elections. Lowell Nelson told the Legislature’s Government Operations and Political Subdivisions Committee Wednesday that such systems allow voters to list their second choice among candidates, as well as their favorite.

If no candidate receives a majority, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. Voters who had supported that eliminated candidate would then have their “second-choice” votes given to remaining candidates to help one of them achieve a majority.

Utah GOP Chairman Thomas Wright said the state party has taken no position on instant runoff voting, and that Nelson is promoting that on his own. Nelson said Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, was interested in the idea, and asked him to make a presentation about it. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: IRV, primary election, ranked choice voting

Salt Lake County may need to buy new voting machines | The Salt Lake Tribune

May 182011

Salt Lake County may have to come up with $10 million or more to keep elections running smoothly beyond 2015.

Elections Director Scott Konopasek announced Tuesday that the county’s voting machines may need to be swapped by then,meaning that the county would have to come up with the cash for about 3,000 replacements.

The projected tab: $10 million to $15 million. Read More »

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Utah Comments Off Topics: election costs, ES&S, Premier Election Solutions, Scott Konopasek, voting industry
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