Back to the Real Salt Lake Newsfeed

Should Utah skip balloting for areas without a contested election?

Earlier this month, South Jordan residents reelected Tamara Zander and Patrick Harris to the City Council with unanimous 100% votes.

Both Zander and Harris were unopposed and their elections were the only races listed on the ballots for their respective districts. But a third council seat was contested, effectively requiring that roughly 14,000 ballots be prepared and distributed at taxpayer expense to Zander and Harris’ constituents, who had no real votes to cast.

“You either cancel the whole election or you hold the whole election,” said Justin Lee, director of elections for the Utah Lieutenant Governor’s Office.