For nearly two years, believers in Donald Trump’s false claims of widespread election fraud have been clamoring for an audit of elections in the Beehive State. Under a bill winding its way through the Utah Legislature, that may happen — just not entirely in the way they want.
The House Government Operations Committee unanimously approved HB269 on Tuesday afternoon, which mandates a performance audit of Utah’s elections in even-numbered years. Legislative auditors are tasked to review almost every aspect of the primary and general elections, from candidate selection to counting ballots.
The bill from House Majority Leader Rep. Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, springboards from a year-long probe of Utah’s elections instigated by Schultz in late 2021. He explained he was motivated not by unfounded fraud claims but by a desire to build confidence in Utah’s elections.
“Even though that was well after the 2020 election, everyone thought it was partisan and I was questioning the results of that election. I can’t count how many reporters asked if this was about Trump. That was ridiculous,” Schultz said.
That audit did not find any evidence of fraud but highlighted some areas for improvement. Auditors found a patchwork of election procedures that vary from county to county across the state, which includes how often voter registration records are updated and procedures for counting ballots.
(Leah Hogsten |...
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