Utah State Senate elections, 2020

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2020 Utah Senate Elections
General	November 3, 2020
Primary	June 30, 2020

Past Election Results

2018・2016・2014 2012・2010・2008

2020 Elections
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Elections for the office of Utah State Senate took place in 2020. The general election was held on November 3, 2020. A primary was scheduled for June 30, 2020. The filing deadline was March 19, 2020.

A total of 15 seats out of the chamber's 29 seats were up for election in 2020. Democrats won 2 seats and Republicans won 13 seats. There was no change in partisan control of the chamber, and Republicans maintained their 23-6 veto-proof majority.

The Utah State Senate was one of 86 state legislative chambers with elections in 2020. There are 99 chambers throughout the country. In 2018, 87 out of 99 legislative chambers held elections.

Utah's 2020 gubernatorial and state legislative elections affected partisan control of redistricting following the 2020 census. In Utah, the state legislature is responsible for enacting both congressional and state legislative district plans (an advisory redistricting commission is involved in the drafting process). District plans are subject to gubernatorial veto.

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

Utah modified its absentee/mail-in voting procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:

• Absentee/mail-in voting: The third-party collection and return of absentee ballots was restricted to individuals residing in the same household as the voter.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

Party control

See also: Partisan composition of state senates and State government trifectas

Utah State Senate
Party		As of November 3, 2020	After November 4, 2020
	Democratic Party	6	6
	Republican Party	23	23
Total		29	29

General election

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Primary election
The candidate list below is based on candidate filing lists provided by the Utah Secretary of State on March 19, 2020.

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Convention
The Democratic and Republican parties held conventions on April 25, 2020, to either narrow down the field for the primary or advance a candidate to the general election.

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Incumbents who were not re-elected

See also: Annual State Legislative Competitiveness Report: Vol. 10, 2020

Incumbents defeated in the general election

No incumbents lost in the Nov. 3 general election.

Incumbents defeated in primary elections

One incumbent lost in the June 30 primaries, the first time an incumbent Senator had been defeated within the preceding decade.

Name	Party	Office
Lyle Hillyard	Republican	Senate District 25

Retiring incumbents

There were three open seats where the incumbent legislator did not file for re-election in 2020. Those incumbents were:

Name	Party	Office
Deidre Henderson	Republican	Senate District 7
Allen Christensen	Republican	Senate District 19
Ralph Okerlund	Republican	Senate District 24

The three seats left open in 2020 represented a decrease from the decade-high six open seats in 2018. The table below shows the number of open seats in each election held between 2010 and 2020.

Open Seats in Utah State Senate elections: 2010 - 2020
Year	Total seats	Open seats	Seats with incumbents running for re-election
2020	15	3 (20 percent)	12 (80 percent)
2018	15	6 (40 percent)	9 (60 percent)
2016	15	4 (27 percent)	11 (73 percent)
2014	14	2 (14 percent)	12 (86 percent)
2012	14	3 (21 percent)	11 (79 percent)
2010	15	1 (7 percent)	14 (93 percent)

Process to become a candidate

See also: Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Utah

See statutes: Title 20, Chapter 9 of the Utah Election Code

Political party candidates

A political party candidate must first file a declaration of candidacy in person with either the Office of the Utah Lieutenant Governor or the county clerk in the candidate's county of residence. The filing period opens on January 2 of the year in which the regular general election is held. If January 2 is one a weekend, the filing period opens the first business day after January 2. The filing period ends on the fourth business day after the opening of the filing period.

The candidate must provide a certified copy of the declaration of candidacy to the chair of the county or state political party of which the candidate is a member. The candidate must also file a fair campaign practices pledge with the Office of the Utah Lieutenant Governor. The candidate must provide a certified copy of the candidate's pledge to the chair of his or her county or state political party.

A candidate must also pay a filing fee. The filing fee is $50 plus one-eighth of 1 percent of the total salary for the full term of the office that the candidate is seeking. A person who is unable to pay the filing fee may file a declaration of candidacy without payment of the filing fee upon a showing of "impecuniosity" (i.e., lacking sufficient funds) as evidenced by an affidavit of impecuniosity filed with the filing officer and, if requested by the filing officer, a financial statement filed at the time the affidavit is submitted.

A political party candidate can be nominated via the convention process or the petition process. Conventions, and nominations made via convention, are conducted in accordance with political party bylaws. If a candidate opts to petition for ballot placement, he or she must collect signatures. Prior to doing so, the candidate must file a notice of intent to gather signatures with either the lieutenant governor's office of the county clerk in the candidate's county of residence (this form is distinct from the declaration of candidacy form noted above). Signature requirements vary according to the office being sought.

Signature requirements
Office	Signature requirement
Statewide offices (e.g., governor, United States Senator)	28,000
United States Representative	7,000
Utah State Senate	2,000
Utah House of Representatives	1,000

In order to sign a petition for a political party candidate, a voter must be allowed to vote in that party's primary election. A voter cannot sign more than one petition for the same office. Completed petitions must be submitted to either the lieutenant governor's office or the county clerk for candidates whose districts lie entirely within a single county. The filing deadline is two weeks prior to the party's nominating convention.

Independent candidates

A candidate who does not wish to affiliate with a ballot-approved political party may appear on the general election ballot by submitting a petition and a certificate of nomination form. A candidate for the office of governor must submit a petition with the signatures of at least 1,000 registered Utah voters. A candidate for the United States Senate must submit a petition with the signatures of at least 1,000 registered Utah voters. A candidate for the United States House of Representatives must submit a petition with the signatures of at least 300 registered voters residing within the congressional district, or at least 5 percent of the registered voters residing within the congressional district, whichever is less. A candidate for the state legislature must submit a petition with the signatures of at least 300 registered voters residing within the political division, or at least 5 percent of the registered voters residing within the political division, whichever is less.

The names on the petition must be verified by the appropriate county clerk(s). After the petition has been verified, a candidate for state office is required to file the same petition and a certificate of nomination with the Office of the Utah Lieutenant Governor. The filing period opens on January 2 of the year in which the regular general election is held. If January 2 is one a weekend, the filing period opens the first business day after January 2. The filing period ends on the fourth business day after the opening of the filing period.

Write-in candidates

To become a valid write-in candidate for a state office, an individual must file a declaration of write-in candidacy no later than 60 days before the regular general election. A candidate for statewide offices must file the declaration in person with the Office of the Utah Lieutenant Governor. All other state office candidates may file the declaration in person either with the county clerk in their counties of residence or with the Office of the Utah Lieutenant Governor.

2020 ballot access requirements

The table below details filing requirements for Utah State Senate candidates in the 2020 election cycle.

Filing requirements for state legislative candidates, 2020
Chamber name	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Utah State Senate	Qualified party	2,000	$114.12	3/19/2020	Source
Utah State Senate	Unaffiliated	5% of registered voters in the district, or 300, whichever is less	$114.12	3/19/2020	Source

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

To be eligible to serve in the Utah State Senate, a candidate must be:

• A U.S. citizen at the time of filing
• 25 years old at the filing deadline time
• A three-year resident of Utah at the filing deadline time
• A resident for 6 months of the senate district from which elected at the filing deadline time
• No person holding any public office of profit or trust under authority of the United States, or of this State, can be a member of the state senate, provided, that appointments in the State Militia, and the offices of notary public, justice of the peace, United States commissioner, and postmaster of the fourth class, shall not, within the meaning of this section, be considered offices of profit or trust.
• A qualified voter. A qualified voter is someone who is:

* A U.S. citizen

* A resident of Utah for at least 30 days prior to the next election

* At least 18 years old by the next election

* His or her principal place of residence is in a specific voting precinct in Utah.

Salaries and per diem

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

State legislative salaries, 2024
Salary	Per diem
$293.55/legislative day	Per diem is reimbursed to state legislators when they submit receipts or turn in expense reports.

When sworn in

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Utah legislators assume office the first day in January.

Utah political history

Trifectas

A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government.

Utah Party Control: 1992-2024
No Democratic trifectas  •  Thirty-three years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24
Governor	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
Senate	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
House	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R

Presidential politics in Utah

2016 Presidential election results

U.S. presidential election, Utah, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes	Electoral votes
	Democratic	Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine	27.5%	310,676	0
	Republican	Donald Trump/Mike Pence	45.5%	515,231	6
	Libertarian	Gary Johnson/Bill Weld	3.5%	39,608	0
	Green	Jill Stein/Ajamu Baraka	0.8%	9,438	0
	Independent	Evan McMullin/Nathan Johnson	21.5%	243,690	0
	Constitution	Darrell Lane Castle/Scott Bradley	0.7%	8,032	0
	Independent American	Rocky Giordani/Farley Anderson	0.2%	2,752	0
	Unaffiliated	Rocky De La Fuente/Michael Steinberg	0.1%	883	0
	Unaffiliated	Monica Moorehead/Lamont Lilly	0%	544	0
	Unaffiliated	Alyson Kennedy/Osborne Hart	0%	521	0
	Unaffiliated	Write-in candidates	0%	55	0
Total Votes				1,131,430	6
Election results via: Utah Lieutenant Governor's Office

Voter information

How the primary works

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. In Utah, state law allows parties to decide who may vote in their primaries. Check Vote.Utah.gov for details about upcoming elections.

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Poll times

Utah is an all-mail voting state that offers vote centers for voters that choose to vote in person. All vote centers are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time. Utah voters are able to vote in person at any vote center. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.

Registration requirements

Check your voter registration status here.

To register to vote in Utah, an applicant must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of Utah for at least 30 days prior to the election, and at least 18 years old by the next general election. Pre-registration is available for 16- and 17-year-olds. 17-year-olds may vote in primary elections if they will turn 18 by the general election. Registration can be completed online or by mailing in a form. The deadline to register online or by mail is 11 days before Election Day. After this deadline, voters may register in person at a vote center by casting a provisional ballot and providing two forms of identification.

Automatic registration

Utah does not practice automatic voter registration.

Online registration

See also: Online voter registration

Utah has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.

Same-day registration

In 2018, Utah enacted same-day voter registration; voters may register on Election Day and during the ten days prior by casting a provisional ballot and providing two forms of identification.

Residency requirements

Prospective voters must be residents of the state for at least 30 days before the election.

Verification of citizenship

See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States

Utah does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. An individual must attest that they are a U.S. citizen when registering to vote. According to the state's voter registration application, a person who commits fraudulent registration is "guilty of a class A misdemeanor" under Utah Code 20A-2-401.

All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment. As of November 2024, five states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, and New Hampshire — had passed laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration. However, only two of those states' laws were in effect, in Arizona and New Hampshire. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allowed noncitizens to vote in some local elections as of November 2024. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters.

Verifying your registration

The Utah lieutenant governor’s office allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website.

Voter ID requirements

Utah requires in-person voters to present non-photo identification while voting.

The following list of accepted ID was current as of April 2023. Click here for the Utah State Legislature's statute defining accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.

“

"Valid voter identification" means: a form of identification that bears the name and photograph of the voter which may include: a currently valid Utah driver license; a currently valid identification card that is issued by: the state; or a branch, department, or agency of the United States; a currently valid Utah permit to carry a concealed weapon; a currently valid United States passport; or a currently valid United States military identification card; one of the following identification cards, whether or not the card includes a photograph of the voter: a valid tribal identification card; a Bureau of Indian Affairs card; or a tribal treaty card; or two forms of identification not listed under Subsection (76)(a) or (b) but that bear the name of the voter and provide evidence that the voter resides in the voting precinct, which may include: a current utility bill or a legible copy thereof, dated within the 90 days before the election; a bank or other financial account statement, or a legible copy thereof; a certified birth certificate; a valid social security card; a check issued by the state or the federal government or a legible copy thereof; a paycheck from the voter's employer, or a legible copy thereof; a currently valid Utah hunting or fishing license; certified naturalization documentation; a currently valid license issued by an authorized agency of the United States; a certified copy of court records showing the voter's adoption or name change; a valid Medicaid card, Medicare card, or Electronic Benefits Transfer Card; a currently valid identification card issued by: a local government within the state; an employer for an employee; or a college, university, technical school, or professional school located within the state; or a current Utah vehicle registration.

”

Early voting

Utah permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.

Early voting permits citizens to cast ballots in person at a polling place prior to an election. In states that permit no-excuse early voting, a voter does not have to provide an excuse for being unable to vote on Election Day. States that allow voters to cast no-excuse absentee/mail-in ballots in person are counted as no-excuse early voting states.

As of February 2024, 47 states and the District of Columbia permitted no-excuse early voting.

Absentee voting

Utah conducts what are commonly referred to as all-mail elections. In Utah, voting is conducted primarily, although not necessarily exclusively, by mail. Election officials automatically distribute mail-in ballots to eligible electors.

See also

• Utah State Senate
• Utah State Legislature
• State legislative elections, 2020

External links

Suggest a link

• Utah State Legislature

Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Utah State Senate

Leadership

Majority Leader:Evan Vickers

Minority Leader:Luz Escamilla

Senators

District 1

Scott Sandall (R)

District 2

Chris Wilson (R)

District 3

John Johnson (R)

District 4

David Buxton (R)

District 5

Ann Millner (R)

District 6

Jerry Stevenson (R)

District 7

Stuart Adams (R)

District 8

Todd Weiler (R)

District 9

Jennifer Plumb (D)

District 10

Luz Escamilla (D)

District 11

Daniel Thatcher (R)

District 12

Karen Kwan (D)

District 13

Nate Blouin (D)

District 14

Stephanie Pitcher (D)

District 15

Kathleen Riebe (D)

District 16

Wayne Harper (R)

District 17

Lincoln Fillmore (R)

District 18

Dan McCay (R)

District 19

Kirk Cullimore (R)

District 20

Ronald Winterton (R)

District 21

Mike Kennedy (R)

District 22

Heidi Balderree (R)

District 23

Keith Grover (R)

District 24

Curtis Bramble (R)

District 25

Mike McKell (R)

District 26

David Hinkins (R)

District 27

Derrin Owens (R)

District 28

Evan Vickers (R)

District 29

Don Ipson (R)

Republican Party (23)

Democratic Party (6)