Elections official reports 7,943 ballots in Iron County Republican primary; canvas approved

An elections official reported that Iron County counted 7,943 ballots in the June 23, 2026 Republican primary and the Board of Canvassers approved the official canvas by voice vote on the same day.

John, the presenter, told the board the county had 21,379 active voters and a turnout of 37.2 percent. "We counted, total of 7,943 ballots," he said, and gave a breakdown: 7,648 mail ballots, 13 early in‑person ballots, 267 election‑day ballots and 13 provisional ballots that were counted. He also reported 7,945 vote histories—two more than ballots counted—explaining two envelopes arrived without ballots and one envelope contained only a voting‑method survey.

The presenter described Iron County’s participation in a pilot tied to HB 300 that asked voters their preferred voting method. "Anecdotally, we had about 97% asked to vote by mail," he said, and noted a QR‑code pilot produced some returned registration forms without accompanying ballots.

On provisional and rejected ballots, the presenter gave detailed counts: 14 provisional ballots were issued (13 counted); 78 challenged curable ballots; 51 curable but not cured; 18 envelopes with signatures that did not match; three unsigned envelopes; 30 ballots challenged for other curable reasons; and 122 rejected non‑provisional ballots, 121 of which were returned after the deadline. He linked many of the rejections to HB 300’s signature/ID rule requiring the last four digits of either a Social Security number or driver’s license. "HB 300 actually caused votes to not be counted," he said, adding he had testified in the Senate about concerns the rule could disenfranchise voters.

The presenter also explained the county’s possession rule for ballots: a ballot must be in the clerk’s possession by the deadline rather than rely on the postmark. He gave the example of one voter whose overnighted ballot arrived after 8 p.m. on election night and therefore could not be counted.

After the presentation, Chair asked for a motion to approve the canvas. County Treasurer Nicole Rosenberg moved to approve the canvas of the June 23, 2026 Republican primary election; John seconded. The Chair called for the voice vote; members responded "Aye," and the motion carried. The Chair then closed the meeting.

The board’s report noted no anomalies or irregularities that raised concern for the elections administrator beyond the procedural confusions tied to new HB 300 requirements. The county’s official results for select races included Celeste Malloy with 5,366 votes and Phil Lyman with 2,499 in the multi‑county House race; Linda Hanks 4,052 and Nicole Beecher Isom 3,068 in State School Board District 14; and Mike Blake 4,013 to Bruce McDonald’s 3,742 in County Commissioner A.

The board took no further action and adjourned.