Casting a vote: Utahns mail in, drop off ballots in COVID-19 era primary election

Danielle Demarco drops off her primary ballot at Murray City Hall in Murray on Tuesday. Utahns flocked to the polls — or more precisely in the COVID-19 era, vote drop-off sites — to pick their candidates for the statewide and federal offices, including a hotly contested governor’s race. In the battle for the GOP nomination for governor, polls showed Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox and former Gov. Jon Huntsman locked in a close battle, trailed by former Utah House Speaker Greg Hughes and former Utah GOP Chairman Thomas Wright. Even though polls closed at 8 p.m., candidates had to wait until 10 p.m. for an initial release of results. And even then, many do not believe winners will be called as many mail-in ballots are being quarantined and others have yet to arrive because of election changes made in light of the coronavirus pandemic.