NOM

This describes my religious status and my political one. I unaffiliated from the Republican part a few years before I left the mormon church. I've made an honest effort to stay informed and vote in the political process in Utah and the US, but I have been unable to find a party or candidate that represents my views enough to affiliate. I was happy to see in this article that there are a large number of Utahn's in this group:

https://www.ksl.com/article/46703533/un ... ey-do-this

Recently, Utah sent out this letter it is just felt like they were trying to force me back into a party affiliation or they would not mail me a ballot. I really didn't like the tone of this and gave them the finger. It's really kind of pissed me off. I hate Utah's system and it really just makes me feel like voting is a waste of time anymore. I know that's a cop out and if I really wanted change I'd need to dedicate a great deal of my time to getting involved and change it. Honestly, I guess I'm just too lazy and pissed off at it all. Especially after seeing how the Utah government is really run by TSCC and how the presidency of this country is nearly a joke around the world, how other countries and big money basically control it all.

Okay, rant over; I'll probably still vote, but I'll just have to go to the polls this year. F all of them!

May as well sell my soul to the devil and maybe he can teach me to play the guitar real good!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRQkC2FDXuw

Thoughts?

I am guessing that you are talking about the letter from your County Clerk. If you are in Salt Lake County you got the same letter that I did. That letter is very specifically about the upcoming presidential primary in Utah.

By way of coffee shop discussion let me give you a little bit of background as I understand it. Utah is a closed primary state, but at the option of the individual party which makes it more confusing. With an open primary, any registered voter may vote. But with a closed primary the voter must declare a party affiliation in order to vote in that party's primary. One could argue that this is not really all that sinister a thing to exclude non-party affiliates from what is essentially party business. Opening the primary leaves a party vulnerable to crossover voting, sometime called raiding, where voters from the opposing party will vote the other party's primary to try to get weaker candidates selected.

Now back to the confusing part. In Utah the Republican party has chosen to close their primary to unaffiliated voters. But the Democratic party has chosen to have their primary to be open. That is why the form with letter I got from the County Clerk has three check boxes, two relating to the Democratic primary and one the Republican. For the Democratic primary you can stay unaffiliated but still request a ballot. Hence you have two choices on that side which are to 1) only request a ballot, or 2) declare affiliation with the Democrats which will also result in a ballot being sent. With the Republican side you only have one choice, which is to affiliate if you want a ballot to their closed primary.

Let me point out that in the case of Salt Lake County, the County Clerk is a Democrat who, unlike a certain holder of high office who shall not be named, actually thinks it important to obey the law. It is not the State that sent the letter, but it is following state law.

I certainly empathize with your frustration with the way TSCC has tried to meddle in local elections and then unethically used back channels to overturn the will of the voters. The primary system, however, is not really tied to that. Assuming you want to remain unaffiliated, either request the Democratic ballot or don't vote in the presidential primary.

So if you want to make sure you get to vote you can always register as a Republican but still vote Democrat. It would be pretty funny if a lot of people did that.

DPRoberts wrote: ↑

Tue Jan 14, 2020 9:29 pm

I certainly empathize with your frustration with the way TSCC has tried to meddle in local elections and then unethically used back channels to overturn the will of the voters. The primary system, however, is not really tied to that. Assuming you want to remain unaffiliated, either request the Democratic ballot or don't vote in the presidential primary.

Thanks DPR! I think my Weber County clerk is not as...nuanced or liberal perhaps? I don't remember seeing an option like that on my letter. But it's a minor inconvenience, I'll just vote in person this year.

Hagoth wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 15, 2020 2:20 pm

So if you want to make sure you get to vote you can always register as a Republican but still vote Democrat. It would be pretty funny if a lot of people did that.

That's also not a bad idea Hagoth! Stick close to the devil you know so you can switch it up on them in the end.

Hagoth wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 15, 2020 2:20 pm

So if you want to make sure you get to vote you can always register as a Republican but still vote Democrat. It would be pretty funny if a lot of people did that.

Yes, I have considered registering as a Republican so that I can have a say on who gets elected. Because the primary is where the republican candidate is picked and you know he is going to be elected because Utah is so red it puts roses to shame.

Have the Republicans in Utah ever considered using a Temple recommend in place of State registration?

moksha wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 25, 2020 7:20 pm

Have the Republicans in Utah ever considered using a Temple recommend in place of State registration?

I'm guessing that might an unspoken rule/option. But I also think they don't want to reduce their numbers, so they make an exception for non-tithe payers or broken soles, in order to bolster their numbers. That's why changing ward boundaries is good practice for drawing lines on the voting districts. Gerrymandering anyone?