Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
PROVO — Amid the aftermath of the Tuesday night primary elections, a spotlight has been on Utah County due to its recent decision to cease paying for return postage on mail-in ballots.
The county faced controversy after the decision was made in January, sparking debate over whether it would suppress voters in upcoming elections.
Both sides of the postage stamp debate thought the decision would have a much larger impact on voter turnout, but projections show it's a little less than 2 percentage points higher than the last primary election.
Utah County Clerk Aaron Davidson considers it a win. "It was a success for as far as I'm concerned," he said.
The percentage of voter turnout that Davidson said he believes will come from this primary election is 39%. He said that the rate has taken longer to calculate due to more voters showing up in person at the last second.
"So, we had over (30,000 or) 36,000 people drop off their ballots yesterday," he said, "and we had over 3,000 (people) that came to the voting booths."
He said the decision to no longer pay for postage has helped the election process rather than stunt it, adding, "It's been a tremendous outcome."
Historically, the voter turnout rates have been similar in Utah County. The 2022 primaries had a 37% turnout rate.
The biggest difference with this election, he said, "our dropbox usage went from about 60% to 80%. So, that is the exact response that I was hoping for."
Voter turnout data
Out of the released data from Tuesday, over 70,000 voters used the ballot dropbox, while around 18,000 people voted by mail.
"In my calculations, with the turnout for this primary, it was about $25,000 to $30,000 dollars that we saved," Davidson said.
A lot of criticism was drawn over whether the county's decision in early 2024 to cease paying for return postage on mail-in ballots would sway election outcomes.
When asked what he would say to people online who have accused the county of attempting to suppress voters, Davidson responded that the dropbox usage increased by 20 percentage points.
"So, I think it had the exact intended effect that I had hoped it would have," he said.
By law, the county still must pay for mail-in ballots without postage.
Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson pointed this fact out on social media in January after the county chose to stop offering stamp payments.
"You know, unfortunately, she said that, Davidson said. "I mean, she actually voted for that bill that said that counties no longer had to pay for return postage sleeves in the the senate at the time. So she voted for that, that statute."
Davidson says of the mail-in ballots the county received, most came with a prepaid stamp.
Data released by Utah County's Elections Division shows that as of Wednesday, about 3,866 ballots have been without postage, forcing the county to pay.
"You know, people took advantage of other people paying their postage," Davidson said, "I think it was about just under $2,000 that we had to pay."
He said it has still been less of an expense to the county regardless to have to pay postage after the fact than offer it as a courtesy.
Davidson said due to the large volume of voters coming in before the deadline yesterday, the county will need some extra time to process the thousands of still-uncounted votes.
