The thousands of Republican delegates to the state party’s organizing convention on Saturday will have the time-saving benefit of electronic voting, thanks to a donation from Gov. Gary Herbert’s political action committee.
A spokesman for Herbert confirmed a donation of roughly $18,000 to the party, but declined to comment further. Rob Anderson, the outgoing Utah Republican Party chairman, said the money will be used for hand-held voting devices, allowing for a faster and precise count in what is often a daylong marathon of balloting on party officers, bylaws, rules and resolutions.
“It will go smoother with a more definitive outcome,” Anderson said of electronic voting. “We’re grateful for the donation.”
Prior to Herbert’s donation, the party planned to conduct paper balloting, which is cheaper than electronic voting but can delay a formal count of delegates. The Utah Republican Party has faced legal and operational debt in recent years, with roughly $100,000 in outstanding bills left over from the last organizing convention in 2017.
Anderson said he anticipates between 2,600 and 2,800 delegates — out of 4,000 total — to participate in Saturday’s event at Utah Valley University. The convention will include the election of four party officers as well as the consideration of four resolutions, 24 proposed changes to the party’s constitution and bylaws, and remarks by Republican state leaders and members of Congress.
Anderson is not seeking reelection as chairman, but four Republicans are vying to succeed him in leading the state’s dominant political party. Delegates will also elect a vice chairman and party secretary.
A fourth party office, party treasurer, includes a single candidate running unopposed.
Anderson said delegates should “be prepared for anything,” but that many of the agenda items likely will not require extensive debate.
“I think the [party] elections are probably the big one,” Anderson said. “I don’t think anything else is going to be a barn burner.”
Among this year’s resolutions are a proposed endorsement of ranked-choice voting, a call for the repeal of hate crimes legislation approved by the Legislature in March and a statement in support of upholding Utah’s dual path election law, SB54.
“Any delegate can sponsor a resolution,” Anderson said.
SB54, adopted in 2014, allows partisan candidates to qualify for a primary by gathering voter signatures or earning the support of party delegates at a caucus or convention. The law has generated significant division with the Utah Republican Party, with supporters of the traditional caucus and convention nominating system launching a series of legal challenges against the state — most of which were unsuccessful — and pushing the party to adopt bylaws and rules aimed at discouraging the signature route.
All four candidates to replace Anderson have stated their desire to move beyond the SB54 infighting and unify the party.
Follow @bjaminwood