Unlike other elections, state liquor outlets, private clubs and restaurants will be selling liquor during the Western States Presidential Primary.

The Alcoholic Beverage Control Act requires that state liquor stores close during general, primary and statewide elections. And it requires restaurants, private clubs and package agencies, located in resorts and towns, to stop selling liquor until after the polls close.

But when the first Western States Presidential Primary was held in 2000, Utah liquor-control officials conferred with the Utah Attorney General's Office and concluded this primary does not does fall under legal definitions spelled out in Utah's Election Code.

Here's the reasoning: Regular primary elections, by law, must be held on the fourth Tuesday of June of even-numbered years. And statewide special elections may only be held on certain days in June and November and may only be called by the executive order of the governor or a legislative resolution.

In contrast, the Western States Presidential Primary was created by a statute located in a separate chapter of the Election Code.

During regular elections, however, the only thing stopping voters from toasting their election victors is stumbling through the state's maze of conflicting liquor laws.

For instance, resorts and hotels are forbidden at banquets from serving diners even a single glass of beer - at the same time that voters may stop by any grocery outlet and pick up a six-pack.

Still, there's a loophole for any election. Local cities may enact their own rules, as long as the liquor prohibitions are stricter than the state's.

- Dawn House