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Letter: New rules on crossover voting blocked my anti-Trump vote

(Trent Nelson  |  Tribune file photo) Utah voters cast ballots at the University of Utah's Marriott Library in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, March 3, 2020. Even as parties hold their county nominating conventions leading up to the June 30 primary and Nov. 3 general election, a number of candidates already have secured their re-election without a single vote cast.

(Trent Nelson | Tribune file photo) Utah voters cast ballots at the University of Utah's Marriott Library in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, March 3, 2020. Even as parties hold their county nominating conventions leading up to the June 30 primary and Nov. 3 general election, a number of candidates already have secured their re-election without a single vote cast.

As registered Republicans opposed to the re-election of Donald Trump, my wife and I were confused and disappointed to be turned away on Super Tuesday at a Democrat polling station in Salt Lake County when we arrived to cast our ballots for a reliable Democrat to challenge Trump.

Unbeknownst to us, our previously mailed Republican ballots disqualified our good faith participation in the Democratic primary on grounds that the state of Utah has taken oversight of the primary elections for both parties. Who would've known? This seemingly superficial change at the top means nothing to the well-intended voter who in previous years cast ballots in both primary caucuses with the blessing and encouragement of the Utah Democratic Party, which is now forced to follow the new state-level rule.

Both the Lieutenant Governor's Office and local media should own blame for failure to clarify this crossover voter option without adequate mention of the disqualifier that denied us our intended vote today.

Brad Parkin, Sandy

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