Twenty new county clerks have taken office in Utah since 2020, and three counties have seen multiple new clerks during those years, meaning 17 of the state’s 29 counties have clerks with three or fewer years of experience.
While the causes of the recent turnover are varied, including the retirement of Salt Lake County Clerk Sherrie Swensen, some officials have pointed to increased tensions around election administrations as part of the problem.
That’s why state lawmakers have begun exploring additional legal protections for poll workers, possibly including enhanced penalties for those who make threats against poll workers.
Ryan Cowley, the state’s director of elections, told the The legislature Acting Government Operations Committee this week that the average experience level of current county officials is just two years.
“The reason I wanted to show this is to highlight a problem. Now, there’s not one reason why we’re losing all of our county employees; it’s a combination of things. Part of it is in the environment that we are in,” he said.
While there have been no “actionable threats” against poll workers, Cowley said there have been some close calls, including some employees being followed home.
Thomas Vaughn, associate general counsel, told lawmakers that similar special protections have been extended to other groups of workers, such as healthcare workers or law enforcement. He said Utah law protects all Utahns from threats, but generally only when there are specific threats that pose “imminent harm” to the recipients.
Several states, including New Mexico, Colorado, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, have recently passed laws to protect workers from harassment or threats, according to the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel.
Rep. Kay Christofferson, R-Lehi, said he favors keeping criminal penalties consistent for similar crimes.
“We keep picking on certain groups to protect and I think everyone needs protection,” he said. “Then we should say, ‘What do all these people have in common?’ and… make it consistent.”
Sen. Daniel Thatcher, R-West Valley City, who is the chairman of the Senate committee, agreed with wanting to find consistency, but said “the reason we’re having this conversation is because there is a threat new and different for these people who perform a basic government function.”
Thatcher recommended that the matter be referred to the Sentencing Commission and/or the Criminal Code Review Task Force, to allow experts to advise lawmakers on future legislation.
The committee did not hear any specific policy proposals Wednesday, but the discussions could help shape the path the Legislature ultimately takes on poll worker safety during next year’s general session.
