[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},"mediaId",6396275,"mediaKeyId","2097385-b10f5feace9d7f33655097cbdc630d23","parentId",2097385,"title","Candidates and county GOP press for access to nominating petitions and CAS records amid signature disputes","audioSeconds",3720,"startMs",654000,"endMs",4374000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2097385-b10f5feace9d7f33655097cbdc630d23&start=654&end=4374","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2097385-b10f5feace9d7f33655097cbdc630d23/thumbnail_654000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6396275/Utah/Candidates-and-county-GOP-press-for-access-to-nominating-petitions-and-CAS-records-amid-signature-disputes","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6396275-b3a3fb1ba97a07cceb32cc14792718b1/orig.mp4?Expires=1775646947&Signature=FaNLu1hh1ylQ6Sz~Op6YxW3d29PUx9yHaDRB66peajjy8uaQF3RpW0RnSFO1mpU5HIb4idneAKN0gWTH-8fURvt0O1uJdMQ57WmrFrukvTcRhgfKI5jOskKUusXndKIdW83X-5Mr8Erl1rEMJi2RdgMhDhYVd1fFuQxnXvr1t0VoH8Y8RHzHCAbM~KNoElLDDmsdv~7w899MLRWB34qNXjN4kScpkLlzpmUAdo~8iF6n0SuDbnzuk0VxsG~LGF4t7P0YYy3tuCI0zfQI7ahS-XAtVxZV4cj-1jD~kCxvfHG~~Zd5nScd3-T8MoT40cEZBT5WnCUtUiujfSKJr-N9bw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","","date","2025-01-10T01:06:31.127Z","article","Phil Lyman and Natalie Clausen described efforts to review nominating-petition packets and CAS (canvas) records after their campaigns and county clerks raised concerns about signature verification for a gubernatorial candidate.

Natalie Clausen identified the packets used to qualify candidates by gathering signatures as \"nominating petitions\" under state code and said she expected them to be accessible for inspection. Clausen said some pages the campaign requested were produced with large portions marked \"private/withheld,\" which she and others asked courts to review. \"Code is very clear,\" Clausen said, arguing that nominating petitions should be treated differently than voter-roll privacy rules.

Phil Lyman described a sequence of administrative steps his team said they followed: public records requests, appeals to administrative officers, and then litigation when they said records were not produced in the timeframes specified by law. Lyman said some counties informed the lieutenant governor’s office in March that they had concerns about packets that later were not made fully available for inspection.

Speakers asserted that one candidate who qualified by signature-gathering did not meet the 28,000 valid-signature threshold they described and that their campaign sought access to the supporting records to verify counts. The pair said the lieutenant governor’s office and other state officials denied or limited access; they have asked courts to compel production and to determine whether statutory definitions require disclosure to candidates.

Clausen and Lyman also described how different treatment of petition records appeared inconsistent: the campaigns said other candidates were allowed to inspect packets in person, while they were denied similar access, and that some signatures were turned over to the attorney general’s office. They said these discrepancies prompted litigation over both the content of petition packets and whether the packets are publicly inspectable in whole or in part.

Why it matters: The petition packets are the documentary basis for the signature pathway to a primary ballot under SB 54. Access to those packets and to CAS/canvas records bears on verification of whether threshold signature counts were met and on transparency of the signature-review process.

Ending: The guests said they filed lawsuits after exhausting administrative remedies and asked the courts to resolve whether nominating petitions and related verification records must be produced in full to candidates and their representatives.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Phil Lyman & Natalie Clawson Discuss the Supreme Court Case, Write-in Campaign, Election Integrity","oneSentenceSummary","Phil Lyman and Natalie Clausen described litigation seeking access to nominating-petition packets and CAS records after they alleged problems in signature verification for a candidate who qualified through the signature pathway.","taxTitle","Utah County Republican Party, Utah GOP Party- Republican Leadership, Utah Legislative Branch, Utah","taxId",77250,"location","Utah","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},6396281,"Utah County GOP guests describe U.S. Supreme Court challenge over SB 54 and party nominating power",2807,3520000,713000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2097385-b10f5feace9d7f33655097cbdc630d23&start=3520&end=713","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2097385-b10f5feace9d7f33655097cbdc630d23/thumbnail_3520000.jpg","/articles/6396281/Utah/Utah-County-GOP-guests-describe-US-Supreme-Court-challenge-over-SB-54-and-party-nominating-power","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6396281-9d591acbe96f529be5989ebbf19e2f9d/orig.mp4?Expires=1775646947&Signature=fmTmt3z7zbrybMmWZzYARTpH64t0RSQkTGw8Hxq~QZAPUlMvklUxVC8T8VoTtGPMteVPe~~Rq6x1yjVj2gaBiw4jp2GAVPlORWQc65BpLxY3GfXds7TwC38TvejhrHgyooNW7TZBgUKhJLw6M1lRA~UQLnk77O~EwnlrCiyfWcImfxhnIMSYdjrS~8rLVq1l3L4mbDwixWPJ7LGYAZv3hn15x0DBR0MtdqZ-V7GHu1gg-IIfdJMhj51qGjbyGqWkU0zGV99Rjv1ZIqB1WwkwgQuPfGf6Hu6HLAeu4180m7gev64NhWE5OKfkq4MwhE4e87weD8LhmUTM1RtrvAqnaA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Charles Max Wood, vice chair of the Utah County Republican Party, opened a podcast discussion on efforts to challenge how Utah’s SB 54 interacts with party nominating rules and the party’s right to associate.

Phil Lyman, a 2024 Republican candidate for governor, said he filed a case that the Utah Supreme Court declined to hear, then petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court. \"The question is: does a political party under the First Amendment right of association have the right to choose its candidate without interference from the legislature?\" Lyman said. He described reliance on a precedent he identified as New York Board of Education v. Torres Lopez and said the U.S. Supreme Court scheduled the case for a conference on Jan. 10.

Natalie Clausen, the party’s lieutenant governor candidate in 2024, and other participants described two thresholds in practice: the party’s own bylaws and the signature pathway created under SB 54, which allows candidates to gather signatures to reach the primary ballot. Lyman and Clausen argued those two mechanisms can conflict when a convention winner exceeds the party threshold and the signature route still produces a primary.

Speakers said the lawsuit challenges whether the state can force a party’s convention winner into a separate primary. \"If the Supreme Court says legislatures can dictate party process, that would be the worst-case scenario for us,\" Lyman said. He added that he had asked the state GOP to join as a plaintiff; when the party declined, his campaign named the party and state officers as defendants.

Participants described possible outcomes if the U.S. Supreme Court accepts argument: the justices could direct remedy to Utah courts, instruct the state to redo parts of the election, or rule there is no conflict between the party’s rules and state law. The speakers stressed that the case centers on the party’s association rights rather than on signature counts or individual audits.

Why it matters: speakers said a ruling for the party would reaffirm that political parties may set their own internal nominating processes without legislative override. A ruling for the state, they said, could allow or clarify a legislature’s role in defining how parties place nominees on the general-election ballot.

The episode included discussion of how previous Utah races have been run under SB 54 and how historic interpretations of the law have treated a convention outcome that exceeds 60 percent as final. Speakers said that practice changed in the recent gubernatorial contest and that the Supreme Court could provide a binding interpretation.

Ending: Guests encouraged party members and delegates to stay engaged while the legal process proceeds and to watch for any U.S. Supreme Court action that could affect whether party nominating rules or state signature pathways control who appears on Utah ballots.","Charles Max Wood, vice chair of the Utah County Republican Party, opened a podcast discussion on a legal challenge asking whether SB 54 allows the state to override a party’s decision on nominees.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},6396267,"Local GOP guests highlight write-in showing, call for decentralization and grassroots organizing",3796,1238000,5034000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2097385-b10f5feace9d7f33655097cbdc630d23&start=1238&end=5034","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2097385-b10f5feace9d7f33655097cbdc630d23/thumbnail_1238000.jpg","/articles/6396267/Utah/Local-GOP-guests-highlight-write-in-showing-call-for-decentralization-and-grassroots-organizing","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6396267-d83ef242385b7fdc2a42505da15c9be5/orig.mp4?Expires=1775646947&Signature=XIhI1L4W1ivW5-pQOUUKt63tG7M3i2aO90UxZEAnky6ZHO8e9S0SzRQPNZkYkG9Ppan~F-Ul25mrqbw7sDlhunKB~bWbWYFz2FaGteElFNiJdJ8FdZtI~9mrkCSL5rO81rIa2K~dhqU5PAtOht7xuh3~uBtDNqSKB0wXn7yFd44X3m8pXPbRIz8eo4kODHDzy-1RkIBTBxjoAqLoFMd99tWGt4DxAnVNQZ1xD13n4w5YbTXydv2OUuldqXlOpF1SOQVqXIqfnLZAJru~8W-y5lY-fa0EMZl~OeHnjLu4M4iWapr98jmPHlSWna9JUxZ27sTQYNBjb94A-hsNiz3uaQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","On a Utah County Republican Party podcast, Phil Lyman and Natalie Clausen described the write-in campaign they mounted after the primary and urged party members to pursue local election reforms and grassroots organizing.

Phil Lyman said the write-in campaign received roughly 14% of the vote in the general election, which he framed as proof of viability despite not appearing on the printed ballot. \"We got close to 14%, which was huge,\" Lyman said, noting national attention in some conservative circles.

Guests discussed election administration changes they favor: returning to decentralized precinct counting, restoring in-person precinct counts with election judges watching each other's work, making board-of-canvassers records (including CAS/canvas records) available for review, and improving audits. Natalie Clausen described cameras on drop boxes and mail tracking systems that she said can give a false sense of security if no one examines the footage or if audit scopes are limited by state direction.

Christie, chair of the Utah County Republican Party, and Charles Max Wood, vice chair, urged local involvement. Wood provided an organizing path: \"Join your LCCs right now,\" he said, referring to Legislative Collaboration Committees forming in house districts to coordinate constituents with representatives. He also supplied a contact: vicechair@ucrp.org and noted ucrp.org as a local information source.

Why it matters: Speakers argued that decentralization and clearer auditability would increase voter confidence and make the system harder to manipulate, and they urged ordinary voters to engage at the precinct and legislative levels.

Ending: Participants emphasized local civic participation—attending precinct meetings, contacting house chairs, and joining LCCs—as a route for residents to influence legislative solutions to election administration concerns.","Podcast guests described a write-in campaign that they said earned nearly 14% of the general-election vote, urged a return to precinct counts and decentralized vote tabulation, and encouraged listeners to join Legislative Collaboration Committees (LCCs) to shape upcoming legislative fixes to election law.","actionData","errors"]

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Candidates and county GOP press for access to nominating petitions and CAS records amid signature disputes

Utah County GOP guests describe U.S. Supreme Court challenge over SB 54 and party nominating power

Local GOP guests highlight write-in showing, call for decentralization and grassroots organizing