By Utah Standard News Staff – May 2, 2016

According to Utah law, 20A-2-300.6., the Chief Elections Officer oversees ALL of Utah’s election laws, including ensuring compliance with state and federal election laws. The Lt. Governor is the Chief Elections Officer

The Chief Elections Officer, Lt. Governor Spencer Cox, is running for reelection this year. Some are questioning the ethics and legality of a sitting office-holder “overseeing” the election activities in Utah while he is campaigning and has opponents running against him. In a post to Utah Standard News, a reader asked: “Isn’t this a conflict of interest for the Chief Election Officer to “oversee” his own election and his own election activities? How is it possible for the Lt. Governor, who runs for office every four years, to act as a ruler over the election activities of the Governor candidate he is running with and the Governor candidate opposing him?”

If someone wants to complain about the Governor’s campaigning activities their only recourse is to contact Lt. Governor Spencer Cox, the Election CEO for Utah, who is also campaigning for re-election on the same ballot as the Governor.

There are rumblings that the Lt. Governor recuse himself on the years he is campaigning for re-election and that the Utah Code be fixed so this conflict of interest doesn’t exist and the Election CEO does NOT OVERSEE his own campaign.
Cox has already been engaged in activities that some see as inapproiate and possibly illegal. In a twitter exchange, he has resorted to name-calling against Herbert’s opponent, Jonathon Johnson.

Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox calls GOP opponent ‘hypocritical’ in porn Twitter exchange |

Cox has also ruled on the legality of the face to face, pay to play fundraising activities of the Governor of Utah in the 2016 Primary election.

According to The Salt Lake Tribune, incumbent Governor Gary Herbert has already opened the Governor’s Mansion to meet one on one with donors, and Lt. Governor Spencer Cox, Utah’s Election CEO has stated there is “no quid pro quo” from these meetings.  The same article quotes the governor saying he will meet with donors whenever and wherever was needed.

The influence of  campaign contributions in Herbert’s Governor’s race surfaced in 2010 when the state of Utah paid out a $13 million settlement to one of the unsuccessful bidders for a record $1.7 billion Utah County road contract. The deal was at the center of a controversy over the influence of campaign contributions to Gov. Gary Herbert, according to a KSL 2010 news story.

KSL reports Herbert accepted a total of $82,500 from members of the winning bid team, Provo River Constructors.  One of those bid team members, Guy Wadsworth, gave $50,000 and had two private meetings with the governor in the weeks before the contract was awarded.   This KSL story with video was dated September 13, 2010.

Alliance for a Better Utah’s blog states, “Since Governor Gary Herbert first ran for the post in 2010, he has received eight donations over 50,000 dollars and around 100 donations over 10 thousands dollars. Herbert is rolling in the dough.”  This was dated  February 19, 2014 and titled What Does a 50K Campaign Contribution Get You?

Note: A call to the communications director at the Attorney General’s office has not been returned. We will update this story if/when we hear from them.
Title 20A – Election Code
Chapter 02 – Voter Registration
20A-2-300.6 – Chief elections officer.
Begin Content 20A-2-300.6. Chief elections officer.
(1) The lieutenant governor is Utah’s chief elections officer.
(2) The lieutenant governor shall:
(a) oversee all of Utah’s:
(i) voter registration activities; and
(ii) other responsibilities established by:
(A) Public Law 103-31, the National Voter Registration Act of 1993; and
(B) Public Law 107-252, the Help America Vote Act of 2002; and
(b) coordinate with local, state, and federal officials to ensure compliance with state and federal election laws.
(3) The lieutenant governor, in cooperation with the county clerks, shall develop a general program to obtain change of address information in order to remove the names of ineligible voters from the official register.
Amended by Chapter 117, 2003 General Session

http://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title20A/Chapter2/20A-2-S300.6.html?v=C20A-2-S300.6_1800010118000101

http://law.justia.com/codes/utah/2010/title-20a/chapter-02/20a-2-300-6/

https://www.ksl.com/?sid=12410116

http://betterutah.org/2014/02/19/50k-campaign-contribution-buy/

http://www.sltrib.com/news/3833261-155/donor-speed-dating-with-guv-doesnt-sit?page=1

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865653179/Gov-Herbert-met-with-lobbyists-to-ask-for-fundraising-help-in-primary.html

http://betterutah.org/2014/02/19/50k-campaign-contribution-buy/

http://www.sltrib.com/news/3833261-155/donor-speed-dating-with-guv-doesnt-sit?page=1

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865653179/Gov-Herbert-met-with-lobbyists-to-ask-for-fundraising-help-in-primary.html