20A-1-206. Cancellation of local election or local race — Municipalities — Special districts — Notice.
(1)
As used in this section:
Terms Used In Utah Code 20A-1-206
Ballot: means the storage medium, including a paper, mechanical, or electronic storage medium, that records an individual voter's vote. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Election: means a regular general election, a municipal general election, a statewide special election, a local special election, a regular primary election, a municipal primary election, and a special district election. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Election officer: means :
(a)
the lieutenant governor, for all statewide ballots and elections;
Local election: means a regular county election, a regular municipal election, a municipal primary election, a local special election, a special district election, and a bond election. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Municipal legislative body: means :
(a)
the council of the city or town in any form of municipal government; or
Municipality: means a city, town, or metro township. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Position: means a square, circle, rectangle, or other geometric shape on a ballot in which the voter marks the voter's choice. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
qualified: means to take the oath of office and begin performing the duties of the position for which the individual was elected. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
“Contested race” means a race in a general election where the number of candidates, including any eligible write-in candidates, exceeds the number of offices to be filled in the race.
(b)
“Election” means an event, run by an election officer, that includes one or more races for public office or one or more ballot propositions.
(c)
(i)
“Race” means a contest between candidates to obtain the number of votes necessary to take a particular public office.
(ii)
“Race,” as the term relates to a contest for an at-large position, includes all open positions for the same at-large office.
(iii)
“Race,” as the term relates to a contest for a municipal council position that is not an at-large position, includes only the contest to represent a particular district on the council.
(2)
A municipal legislative body may cancel a local election if:
(a)
the ballot for the local election will not include any contested races or ballot propositions; and
(b)
the municipal legislative body passes, no later than 20 days before the day of the scheduled election, a resolution that cancels the election and certifies that:
(i)
the ballot for the election would not include any contested races or ballot propositions; and
(ii)
the candidates who qualified for the ballot are considered elected.
(3)
A municipal legislative body may cancel a race in a local election if:
(a)
the ballot for the race will not include any contested races or ballot propositions; and
(b)
the municipal legislative body passes, no later than 20 days before the day of the scheduled election, a resolution that cancels the race and certifies that:
(i)
the ballot for the race would not include any contested races or ballot propositions; and
(ii)
the candidate for the race is considered elected.
(4)
A municipal legislative body that cancels a local election in accordance with Subsection (2) shall give notice that the election is cancelled by:
(a)
subject to Subsection (8), providing notice to the lieutenant governor’s office to be posted on the Statewide Electronic Voter Information Website described in Section 20A-7-801, for 15 consecutive days before the day of the scheduled election; and
(b)
providing notice for the municipality, as a class A notice under Section 63G-30-102, for at least 15 days before the day of the scheduled election.
(5)
A special district board may cancel a local election if:
(a)
the ballot for the local election will not include any contested races or ballot propositions; and
(b)
the special district board passes, no later than 20 days before the day of the scheduled election, a resolution that cancels the election and certifies that:
(i)
the ballot for the election would not include any contested races or ballot propositions; and
(ii)
the candidates who qualified for the ballot are considered elected.
(6)
A special district board may cancel a special district race if:
(a)
the race is uncontested; and
(b)
the special district board passes, no later than 20 days before the day of the scheduled election, a resolution that cancels the race and certifies that the candidate who qualified for the ballot for that race is considered elected.
(7)
A special district that cancels a local election in accordance with Subsection (5) shall provide notice that the election is cancelled:
(a)
subject to Subsection (8), by posting notice on the Statewide Electronic Voter Information Website described in Section 20A-7-801, for 15 consecutive days before the day of the scheduled election; and
(b)
as a class A notice under Section 63G-30-102, for at least 15 days before the day of the scheduled election.
(8)
A municipal legislative body that posts a notice in accordance with Subsection (4)(a) or a special district that posts a notice in accordance with Subsection (7)(a) is not liable for a notice that fails to post due to technical or other error by the publisher of the Statewide Electronic Voter Information Website.
Amended by Chapter 15, 2023 General Session Amended by Chapter 435, 2023 General Session
