After President Trump’s commission on voter fraud requested data from all 50 states, Utah election officials are fielding more questions from concerned voters.
Election clerks in four Utah counties say they’ve received a slight uptick in inquiries from voters worried about their information being made public.
Bryan Thompson is election clerk for Utah County, which has about 300,000 people on its rolls. He says most callers have opted to privatize their data.
“We’ve essentially had about a handful up to a dozen that have inquired through phone call or voicemail, and they’ve just requested that their records be privatized as they are allowed to have happen under state law," he says.
In Salt Lake, Summit and Davis Counties, officials there reported similar stats, either a handful or a dozen or so calls about voter privacy. But few, if any, have asked to be completely taken off the rolls.
Brian McKenzie, chief deputy clerk of Davis County, says he’s explained that the Lieutenant Governor’s office is handling the Trump administration's request and will not be releasing any private information.
“We reassure the individuals that that their social security number, their driver’s license number, their dates of birth are not being provided with that data file, again, if and when that’s released," said McKenzie.
Since 2014, Utah has allowed voters to make their records private if they feel disclosure would put them at risk.
Salt Lake County Clerk Sherrie Swensen advocated for the legislation that made that possible and says she’d like to see it strengthened.
“Now, if a list is requested they don’t automatically include the birth date like they used to," she said. "But, nevertheless, I think we need better protections.”
Swensen says she’s spoken to at least one state lawmaker interested in re-introducing legislation to make Utahns’ information even more secure.
Trump’s voter fraud commission is already running into legal obstacles after several states have balked at the request for data. The ACLU also filed a lawsuit on Monday against the commission for alleged violations of open meeting laws.
