GOP Senate leaders had told UtahPolicy that the SB54 delay bill would die in their body, and, indeed, Sen. Scott Jenkins’ attempt to delay the political party candidate nomination change did die Tuesday. Whether it will pop up again before the Legislature adjourns March 12, either in the Senate or in the House (which already has killed a similar bill) remains to be seen. Sen. Scott Jenkins’ SB43 – which would delay the new dual-track political party candidate primary ballot route until 2018 – died in a 9-19 vote (one absent) after about 30 minutes of debate Tuesday morning. You can see the vote here. No senator who voted for SB54 last year switched and voted to delay it Tuesday. All the no votes came from GOP senators who voted against SB54 last year or are new GOP senators this session.
In his summation, Jenkins, R-Plain City, said that public opinion polls now favor delaying SB54 and in favor of SB43. He was citing a Utah Republican Party poll.
In a December UtahPolicy poll conducted by Dan Jones & Associates 64 percent of Utahns said that they continue to support the Count My Vote party primary reform effort. Twenty-nine percent opposed the CMV petition.
In addition, Jones found that 55 percent of Utahns want SB54 – the 2014 compromise that ended the CMV petition effort and adopted a dual-track to candidates getting on their party’s primary ballot – to be unchanged in the 2015 Legislature.
Full Article: Senate Kills Bill to Delay Count My Vote Compromise.