- Multiple police reports filed after individuals attempted to assault signature gatherers and take their signature packets.
- Turning Point Action announced seven "super chaser" events to help Republicans reach 140,000 signatures by Feb. 15.
- Some Utahns reported feeling they were misled into signing the petition to repeal Utah's Proposition 4 redistricting law.
Signature gatherers working to overturn Utah’s Proposition 4 redistricting law reported multiple instances of aggression toward them over the past week, including cases confirmed with local police departments of stolen signature packets and physical assault.
Violence against signature gatherers appears to have escalated as the Utah Republican Party and national activist groups spread across the state in a final push to collect 141,000 verified signatures before Feb. 15 so voters can decide whether to repeal Prop 4 in November.
The effort to reverse one ballot initiative with another has attracted some of the biggest names in MAGA activism. But amid nationwide redistricting battles, the effort has also been marked by attacks against gatherers and complaints about misleading tactics to secure signatures.
To place Proposition 4 on the ballot, the GOP — through its political interest committee, Utahns for Representative Government — has recruited nearly 1,000 volunteers and contracted with the conservative Patriot Grassroots to bring on 200-250 hired gatherers.
Signature gatherers for Utahns for Representative Government, hailing from all over Utah and all around the country, can be found requesting support to place the Prop 4 repeal on the ballot at stores, malls, parking lots, recreational centers and front doors.
These concerned citizens and conservative activists have now become the target of angry attacks.
Assault on democracy?
On Jan. 23, a signature gatherer in American Fork was assaulted by an individual who took the gatherer’s signature petition packet and ripped it. The individual entered a vehicle with the packet. When the gatherer tried to retrieve it, they were struck on the side of the head.
The individual drove away but witnesses recorded the license plate. Law enforcement responded by arresting the individual, who received multiple charges, including assault, a spokesperson for the American Fork Police Department confirmed to the Deseret News.
The department is receiving “so many complaints” from gatherers similar to this, the spokesperson said. The Deseret News confirmed from police reports other instances of signature packets being stolen from signature gatherers by individuals who choose not to sign.
On Tuesday, police reports were filed in Centerville and in Salt Lake City recording instances where individuals took, and sometimes tore up, signature petition packets from signature gatherers. The actions resulted in the loss of dozens of signatures, according to the reports.
Photo and video evidence of several instances over the weekend show signature gatherers being assaulted in downtown Salt Lake City, having their signature packets stolen, getting hot coffee dumped on their signature packets and being yelled at with racial slurs.
These could not be independently verified by the Deseret News. But one professional signature gatherer in Utah to repeal Prop 4 told the Deseret News he has never seen this kind of violence toward signature gatherers. “The vitriol is unprecedented,” the employee said. “It’s scary.”
In statements to the Deseret News, Axson called the attacks “vile” and said the initiative’s organizers “are very concerned about the safety of our volunteers and partners who are working hard to protect the Utah Constitution and restore representative government.”
“We are utilizing the same process to repeal Prop 4 as was used in 2018 to pass it. At that time, when more than 500,000 Utahns voted against Prop 4, no violence or aggression was ever reported,” Axson said.
“Regardless of your views of Prop 4, this behavior has no place in Utah and I call on all leaders to reject these tactics. Utahns —stand up for our Constitution and show that intimidation and threats will not stop us.”
Initiative gains national attention
The Beehive State’s ballot initiative has drawn attention from the highest levels of GOP politics.
Last week, President Donald Trump endorsed Prop 4’s repeal. This coincided with an eight-day signature-gathering visit from GOP turnout celebrity Scott Presler. And the Utah GOP will soon receive a boost from one of the nation’s most extensive get-out-the-vote operations.
In December, the Deseret News reported Turning Point Action would bring its ground game to Utah for the first time. Turning Point Action is the campaign arm of Turning Point USA, the nonprofit group founded by conservative activist Charlie Kirk who was killed in Utah on Sept. 10.
On Wednesday, Turning Point Action announced seven “Super Chase” events from Feb. 4-15 all along the Wasatch Front. These events mobilize “regular Utahns” to knock doors and gather signatures for a few hours, Turning Point Action COO Tyler Bowyer told the Deseret News.
The GOP must gather 140,748 verified signatures by Feb. 15. As of Thursday, the Lieutenant Governor’s Office recorded 64,379 signatures verified by county clerks. Packets must be submitted within 30 days of getting a signature. Clerks have 21 days after receiving a packet to verify the signatures.
Axson and Republican leaders in the state Legislature have said they are very confident enough signatures will be gathered, arguing the number of verified signatures is a lagging indicator. However, initiative efforts typically aim to gather much more than the required amount to be safe.
Turning Point Action hopes to “put a little extra muscle in” to help the initiative “get across the finish line,” Bowyer said. On Monday, Turning Point Action introduced their first full time field representative over the state of Utah. This could mark a permanent shift in Utah politics, according to Bowyer.
“This is step one to long term, hopefully, involvement in Utah,” Bowyer said. “This power grab that the left has made may, incidentally, activate a lot more conservatives to realize now that they need to get involved and be a lot more vocal. … This is kind of a wake up call for a lot of Utahns.”
The aggression displayed toward some signature gatherers is downstream from political rhetoric that contributed to the violence toward Kirk, federal immigration authorities and the “political process,” Bowyer said. “That’s the opposite of what should be happening in our communities.”
“That’s why we need to tone everything down. Everything needs to cool off a whole lot,” Bowyer said. “Utahns have to step up and make their voice heard loudly, that they’re not going to be intimidated by anger, violence and aggressive rhetoric. It’s just not going to work.”
Complaints about misleading tactics
The GOP has framed the initiative as an effort to return map-drawing authority to elected representatives. Prop 4, narrowly approved by voters in 2018, established an appointed redistricting commission to recommend maps in accordance with partisan fairness requirements.
Antagonism toward the law intensified after 3rd District Judge Dianna Gibson interpreted the statute to disqualify Utah’s existing congressional district map, before citing the law as justification for selecting a map submitted by nonprofit groups, creating a likely Democratic district in Salt Lake.
Utah’s yearslong redistricting saga stems from a lawsuit filed in 2022 alleging the Legislature violated the original intent of Prop 4 — and the Utah Constitution — by ignoring the commission’s recommendations and approving a map that appeared to intentionally split Democratic strongholds.
After Gibson threw out the map for Utah’s four U.S. House seats, currently all held by Republicans, Axson announced he would sponsor a ballot initiative to remove Prop 4 from state code. That effort was supported by Sen. Mike Lee, Attorney General Derek Brown and former U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop.
Some Utahns approached by signature gatherers have claimed they were misled into signing a petition packet by deceptive language. Shane Landon, a resident of West Valley City who describes himself as non-political, said he signed a packet after being told it would prohibit gerrymandering.
On Jan. 21, Landon said he was approached by signature gatherers at Kearns Oquirrh Park Fitness Center where he was taking his sons to go swimming. Landon was told repealing Prop 4 would take power from the judicial system and return it to the people. He signed and then did some research.
“I looked up Prop 4, and it’s the exact opposite of what they just had me sign … so they lied to me,” Landon told the Deseret News. “Elections should go to the person who has the most votes, who has the best ideas, not because we can draw lines around zones that make it so you have a leg up.”
Complaints similar to Landon’s have been reported by KSL. Individuals felt like they signed the petition based on misleading information from gatherers about what the repeal would accomplish. One video shared with the Deseret News showed an alleged gatherer making threatening remarks to a protester.
Those wanting to remove their name must send a written request to their county clerk. If the packet with their signature was submitted before Dec. 1, they have 90 days to make a request. If the packet was submitted after Dec. 1, they have 45 days to request the removal of their name.