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Utah Republicans to introduce bills restricting ways to get on primary ballot

Caucusgoers line up during the presidential primary caucuses at Riverton High School in Riverton on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.
Bethany Baker
/
The Salt Lake Tribune
Caucusgoers line up during the presidential primary caucuses at Riverton High School in Riverton on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.

This legislative session, several Utah lawmakers will introduce bills trying to change or repeal SB54 — legislation that created two ways for candidates to land on the primary ballot.

SB54 changed the candidate nomination process, adding an alternative way to get on a primary ballot: gathering voter signatures.

Before the 2014 bill was passed, the caucus convention system was the only way candidates could get on the primary ballot. With a caucus, voters don’t elect candidates directly. Instead, they vote for local delegates and those delegates vote for candidates when the party picks its nominee.

According to Utah News Dispatch, SB54 was passed as a compromise to a movement led by a non-partisan group called Count My Vote. In 2013, this group addressed the Utah Republican Party with a list of demands to increase voter participation. Count My Vote said it would pursue a ballot initiative to replace the caucus system with direct primaries if those demands were not met. Soon after, SB54 was passed.

However, the bill has since divided Utah Republicans.

This division was on display in last year’s gubernatorial race. Rep. Phil Lyman won at the caucus convention with nearly 68% of delegate support but lost to Gov. Spencer Cox in the primary with almost 46% of votes. Lyman then repeatedly claimed Cox was an illegitimate candidate, questioning the signatures Cox’s team gathered under SB54 to qualify for the primary ballot.

In the wake of the contentious election between Cox and Lyman, many lawmakers have pledged to change SB54.

Utah House Rep. Mike Kohler, R-Midway, represents House District 59 including parts of Summit and Wasatch counties. He said he will introduce a bill that would affect candidates gathering signatures to get on the ballot and help with transparency.

“In the election process, there was some concern about being able to audit the names and make sure they were valid,” Kohler said on KPCW’s Local News Hour. “I have a bill that would make all names on a referendum public information within five days after certification of those names. Not the signatures, those are more protected.”

Tiara Auxier, R-Morgan, said she will go a step further, trying to repeal or replace SB54. Auxier replaced Rep. Kera Birkeland in House District 4, which covers parts of Summit, Morgan and Rich counties.

Auxier said repealing SB54 will preserve the caucus convention system.

“This is where we get to know that whoever is on the ballot is actually a Republican, and they can't just change their affiliation to vote or run as a Republican,” she said during a special election Jan. 11. “We need a full repeal of SB54 and that is something that I am committed to doing, because I think if we can't get our election secure, that we're never going to get another conservative on the ballot again.”

Other lawmakers want to make it easier to get on the primary ballot, like Rep. Ray Ward, R-Bountiful. He has sponsored a bill to lower the required signature thresholds for candidates to qualify.

It’s not yet clear if any of the legislation to change or repeal SB54 will be successful.

The 45-day 2025 legislative session begins Jan. 21 and ends March 7.