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SALT LAKE CITY — While Utahns have been planning their Thanksgiving spread, Salt Lake County Clerk Lannie Chapman has been prepping for the state's unusually timed general election.
This year, Utah's municipal elections will be held two weeks later than normal, on Nov. 21, just two days before Thanksgiving.
The rescheduled vote comes after the state Legislature convened in June to map out the 2nd Congressional District special election after former Rep. Chris Stewart announced his resignation.
While postponing the off-year election will fill the vacant congressional seat quicker and is cheaper than any alternative, it also pushes county election offices into unfamiliar — and possibly holiday-shattering — territory.
Will election workers have to work on Thanksgiving?
"I'm going to try really hard to make sure we don't have to work on Thanksgiving Day," Chapman said. "But my team's ready for whatever we need to do here."
Chapman said her office has been processing ballots since the day after they were sent out on Halloween. But election workers are still expecting "a really large drop" to come on Election Day.
Whether county election workers will be kept counting ballots into Wednesday and Thursday "just depends on when people turn in their ballots," Chapman said.
"The earlier people get them to us — as soon as they know who they want to vote for — we can process them and have them available for election night results," Chapman said, adding, "that's super helpful, not only for my staff, but for the voters and for the candidates too."
How many people have already voted in Salt Lake County elections?
In a normal election, Chapman said, about two-thirds of voters cast their ballots early and a third wait to submit their mail-in ballot or vote in person until the last day. So far, 20% of active registered voters in Salt Lake County have submitted their ballots.
But Chapman says she's hoping that number will climb to 35% or 40% — which would make it a good turnout for a regular off-year municipal general election. But this is not a regular election, Chapman noted.
If Utahns vote early despite the irregular date, Chapman said election results will come quicker and county poll workers will be able to spend the holiday with their families. However, she understands why casting a ballot might not be at the top of the to-do list for many with Thanksgiving around the corner.
"Instead of thinking about who your next city council member is, people are more — and understandably so — gearing up for the holidays and thinking about how best to brine their turkey," Chapman joked. "But I want them to drop their ballot off first and then come up with their delicious brine."
What is ranked choice voting? When is Election Day in Utah?
Another factor making this year's election unusual is the use of ranked choice voting — a ballot design that allows voters to select multiple candidates for each race, ranking their preferences 1-3, or more.
This will be the first time a Salt Lake City mayor's race uses ranked choice voting. However, the city used the voting method for city council races in 2021 along with several other cities across the state.
While ranked choice ballots take slightly longer to be tabulated by voting machines, Chapman said, the process is not any more complicated or burdensome for election workers.
Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Monday, Nov. 20, to be counted. There are 25 drop box locations throughout Salt Lake County, in addition to 20 in-person voting centers, which will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday.
Further information about voting in Salt Lake County can be found on the Salt Lake County clerk's website.
