20A-1-509.1.  Procedure for filling midterm vacancy in county or district with 15 or more attorneys.

(1)  When a vacancy occurs in the office of county or district attorney in a county or district having 15 or more attorneys who are licensed active members in good standing with the Utah State Bar and registered voters, the vacancy shall be filled as provided in this section.

Terms Used In Utah Code 20A-1-509.1

  • 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
  • County legislative body: means :Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • 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
  • Person: means :Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Political party: means an organization of registered voters that has qualified to participate in an election by meeting the requirements of Chapter 8, Political Party Formation and Procedures. 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
  • Regular general election: means the election held throughout the state on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each even-numbered year for the purposes established in Section 20A-1-201. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
  • Regular primary election: means the election, held on the date specified in Section 20A-1-201. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Vacancy: means :
(a) except as provided in Subsection (75)(b), the absence of an individual to serve in a position created by state constitution or state statute, whether that absence occurs because of death, disability, disqualification, resignation, or other cause ; or
(b) in relation to a candidate for a position created by state constitution or state statute, the removal of a candidate due to the candidate's death, resignation, or disqualification. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
(2) 

(a)  The requirements of this Subsection (2) apply when the office of county attorney or district attorney becomes vacant and:

(i)  the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more; and

(ii)  the vacancy occurs before the first day of the declaration of candidacy filing period described in Section 20A-9-201.5.

(b)  When the conditions established in Subsection (2)(a) are met, the county clerk shall notify the public and each registered political party that the vacancy exists.

(c)  All persons intending to become candidates for the vacant office shall:

(i)  file a declaration of candidacy according to the procedures and requirements of 2;

(ii)  if nominated as a party candidate or qualified as an independent or write-in candidate under Chapter 9, Candidate Qualifications and Nominating Procedures, run in the regular general election; and

(iii)  if elected, complete the unexpired term of the person who created the vacancy.

(d)  If the vacancy occurs during the declaration of candidacy filing period described in Section 20A-9-201.5:

(i)  the time for filing a declaration of candidacy under Section 20A-9-202 shall be extended until 5 p.m. seven days after the last day of the filing period described in Section 20A-9-201.5; and

(ii)  the county clerk shall notify the public and each registered political party that the vacancy exists.

(3) 

(a)  The requirements of this Subsection (3) apply when the office of county attorney or district attorney becomes vacant and:

(i)  the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more; and

(ii)  the vacancy occurs after the third Thursday in March of the even-numbered year but more than 75 days before the regular primary election.

(b)  When the conditions established in Subsection (3)(a) are met, the county clerk shall:

(i)  notify the public and each registered political party that the vacancy exists; and

(ii)  identify the date and time by which a person interested in becoming a candidate shall file a declaration of candidacy.

(c)  All persons intending to become candidates for the vacant office shall:

(i)  before 5 p.m. within five days after the day on which the county clerk gives the notice described in Subsection (3)(b)(i), file a declaration of candidacy for the vacant office as required by 2; and

(ii)  if elected, complete the unexpired term of the person who created the vacancy.

(d)  The county central committee of each party shall:

(i)  select a candidate or candidates from among those qualified candidates who have filed declarations of candidacy; and

(ii)  certify the name of the candidate or candidates to the county clerk:

(A)  before 5 p.m. no later than 60 days before the day of the regular primary election; or

(B)  electronically, before midnight no later than 60 days before the day of the regular primary election.

(4) 

(a)  The requirements of this Subsection (4) apply when the office of county attorney or district attorney becomes vacant and:

(i)  the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more; and

(ii)  75 days or less remain before the regular primary election but more than 65 days remain before the regular general election.

(b)  When the conditions established in Subsection (4)(a) are met, the county central committees of each registered political party that wish to submit a candidate for the office shall, not later than five days after the day on which the vacancy occurs, certify the name of one candidate to the county clerk for placement on the regular general election ballot.

(c)  The candidate elected shall complete the unexpired term of the person who created the vacancy.

(5) 

(a)  The requirements of this Subsection (5) apply when the office of county attorney or district attorney becomes vacant and:

(i)  the vacant office has an unexpired term of less than two years; or

(ii)  the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more but 65 days or less remain before the next regular general election.

(b)  When the conditions established in Subsection (5)(a) are met, the county legislative body shall give notice of the vacancy to the county central committee of the same political party of the prior officeholder and invite that committee to submit the names of three nominees to fill the vacancy.

(c)  That county central committee shall, within 30 days after the day on which the county legislative body gives the notice described in Subsection (5)(b), submit to the county legislative body the names of three nominees to fill the vacancy.

(d)  The county legislative body shall, within 45 days after the vacancy occurs, appoint one of those nominees to serve out the unexpired term.

(e)  If the county legislative body fails to appoint a person to fill the vacancy within 45 days, the county clerk shall send to the governor a letter that:

(i)  informs the governor that the county legislative body has failed to appoint a person to fill the vacancy within the statutory time period; and

(ii)  contains the list of nominees submitted by the party central committee.

(f)  The governor shall appoint a person to fill the vacancy from that list of nominees within 30 days after receipt of the letter.

(g)  A person appointed to fill the vacancy under this Subsection (5) shall complete the unexpired term of the person who created the vacancy.

(6)  Nothing in this section prevents or prohibits independent candidates from filing a declaration of candidacy for the office within the required time limits.

Amended by Chapter 13, 2022 General Session

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