Starting next week, voters in 20 of Utah’s 29 counties will begin to receive their primary ballots in the mail, and county clerks want to make sure voters know what to expect.
Seventy percent of Utah voters will be sent ballots in the mail this year, and county clerks across the state expect that number will only increase in the coming years. Ricky Hatch is the Weber County Clerk. He says there are many reasons why more and more counties are choosing to do vote by mail.
“Vote by mail costs less, it allows us to extend the life of our current voting equipment, and it decreases the cost of future voting systems because we don’t need to buy as much equipment,” he says.
He says vote by mail also benefits voters because it allows them to get more informed and it provides greater access to people who are homebound.
Curtis Coke is the Davis County Clerk. He says he recognizes that some people have concerns over privacy and security, but that they have systems in place to address that.
“Each of your county clerks has a database of signatures that have been gathered through voter registration, past elections, and through the department of motor vehicles," he says. "Those signatures are compared to ensure they match what is on the envelope. Yes, every signature is compared.”
Ballots in the 20 counties using vote by mail will be sent out no later than June 6. They must be postmarked by June 27 to be counted in the Primary. Voters also still have the option to vote in person on election day.
