Why are auditors taking a second look at the Utah primaries?

Utah’s statewide Republican primary elections have already been scrutinized by the justice system this year. Now, they will receive an even closer look by both the executive and legislative branches of state government, after several winning candidates requested an audit in an effort to increase trust in elections.

State Auditor John Dougall and state Legislative Auditor General Kade Minchey announced two separate audits into Utah’s primary election process on Tuesday, in addition to the statutorily required audit of Utah elections every federal election year.

Some congressional and statewide GOP primaries put Utah’s election code to the test this year, with a recount required in the 2nd Congressional District and unsubstantiated claims of election fraud in the gubernatorial race. Complaints from candidates and voters highlighted potential areas for improvement in Utah’s election system surrounding transparency with signature and voting records.

Dougall, an elected member of Utah’s executive branch, will conduct a review of how state election officials disclose voter registration information and how candidate signature-gathering packets are validated, he said in a press release on Tuesday. No additional comments will be provided until the “limited review of certain aspects of the state’s election process” is completed.

Minchey, an independent auditor appointed by the bicameral Legislative Audit Subcommittee, will add a special focus on statewide signature-gathering verification processes in his biennial elections report after the subcommittee directed him to do so in a hearing on Tuesday.

GOP statewide candidates request audit

The updated audit comes in response to a request made on Monday by the Republican candidates in Utah’s three biggest statewide races. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox; his running mate, Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson; Derek Brown, the GOP nominee for attorney general; and Rep. John Curtis, the GOP nominee for U.S. Senate; released a statement asking for a legislative audit of the signature-gathering process that put them on the primary ballot in a bid to increase voter confidence.

“We believe this audit will confirm that proper signature verification laws and procedures were followed,” the four said in a statement. “We trust our county clerks and are committed to addressing any issues found to enhance the process.”

The Utah Lieutenant Governors Office contracts out all signature-gathering primary qualifications for statewide and multicounty races to the Davis County Clerk’s Office. Davis County Clerk Brian McKenzie issued a statement on Tuesday welcoming an audit of his office’s signature verification procedures. “I reaffirm that each signature was reviewed by trained election workers and either validated or rejected in accordance with the requirements set forth by Utah Law,” McKenzie said.

In Utah, candidates for statewide races may qualify for a primary election by receiving more than 40% in their party’s nominating convention or by gathering 28,000 signatures from voters that are registered members of their party. Multiple candidates in the same race cannot share signatures from the same voters, giving the first to submit their signature packets an edge.

McKenzie’s office verifies each signature by comparing it to that in the state voter registration database and making sure it matches up with the name and address on record, he said. Signatures are only counted if they come from voters who are registered to vote for the party of the primary candidate.

McKenzie does not know exactly what an audit will entail but looks forward to helping Utah voters understand the process better.

Phil Lyman questions Utah elections

These audits come amid allegations made by state Rep. Phil Lyman about Utah’s primary process. Lyman, who is currently running a write-in campaign promoted by Democratic gubernatorial candidate Brian King, beat Cox at convention among a few thousand state delegates, 67.5%-32.5%, before losing in the statewide primary by more than 37,500 votes.

Lyman claims the signature-gathering path to the primary is invalid because it is different than the process laid out in state GOP bylaws (GOP officials have said that state law overrules party policy), and that Cox did not gather enough signatures for the primary, a claim based on what Lyman sees as a lack of transparency because some voters have made their information private.

In a statement on Tuesday, Lyman questioned the independence of the proposed state legislative audit.

“Announcing an audit of ‘the process’ is a smokescreen. We do not believe that Spencer Cox has the requisite number of original signatures,” Lyman said in a post on X. “We are dealing with a deeply corrupt system. This is the foxes proposing an audit of the hen house.”

Minchey pushed back against claims that his office of legislative auditors is not independent. The legislative audit department is particularly well-suited to audit elections, he said, because it has no connection to the executive branch that actually preforms elections at the county level, and certifies them at the state level.

“That gives us actually maximum independence, because we’re not part of the executive branch, where these functions reside,” Minchey said.