State lawmakers Wednesday appeared inclined to extend another five years a law allowing election-day party registration for independent voters wishing to cast a ballot in the closed GOP primary.

Members of the Government Operations Interim Committee endorsed a proposed renewal of the provision.

The Utah Republican Party changed its rules in 2001 to allow only registered GOP members to participate in primary elections.

The Utah Democratic and other political parties allow all comers to participate.

About 70 percent of voters were not affiliated with a party when the provision was passed. Today 56.5 percent are unaffiliated.

“We want them to be able to come and participate in that primary and not be turned away because they failed to register with the party,” said Todd Weiler, vice-chairman of the Utah Republican Party.

Sen. Brent Goodfellow, D-West Valley City, said that, at his polling place, Republicans were recruiting voters to join the party and vote in the GOP primary.

"As I walked into vote there were people saying, 'If you vote Democrat there's no choices because that was an off-year, but if you sign up here and vote Republican then you have all these choices.' I call that recruiting,” he said. “I think that's wrong.”

Weiler said he, too, believes such conduct is inappropriate, but there would be more harm done if “droves of voters” were turned away from voting in a primary because they failed to register with a party 30 days prior to the election.

Any change that is made - either extending the life of the provision or allowing it to lapse - would not take effect until after the Western Presidential Primary in February, so that election would not be affected.

Goodfellow and Rep. Neil Hansen, D-Ogden, voted against the measure, which the committee endorsed by a 9-2 vote.