Straight Party Voters

Utah has an unusual, if not unique ballot, in that it asks the voter if they want to vote a "straight party" ballot. After the last election, one voter I spoke to thought the ballot asked him to identify his party affiliation. He said he clicked on Republican and bam! the whole ballot was finished. He returned home disappointed that his study of the candidates had been for nothing.

The State Conventions have now been held and the Democratic nominees for Governor and Lt. Governor are a bipartisan pair. Peter Corroon chose as his running mate Cheryl Allen, a Republican. If this has happened in Utah politics since the Governor and Lt Governor became tied together as candidates, I don't remember it. Representative Allen has made it clear that although she is running as the partner to the Democratic candidate, she still considers herself a Republican.

It has, however, got me wondering how the straight party ballot will handle the situation. You cannot vote for more than one person for a specific office but if you decide to vote straight Republican, wouldn't that give Cheryl Allen a vote too? And would a straight Democrat vote go to Peter Corroon, when it would end up giving a vote to a Republican as well?

I have, in the past, voted for candidates all from the same party, but I have never used the straight party option on the ballot. And after running a campaign, I never would. It is such a great sacrifice and service to run for office! I believe that every voter should give candidates the respect of, at the very least, looking at each name on the ballot as they choose their officials. It gives the appearance, if only to oneself, of voting thoughtfully.

I hope that the bipartisan ticket in the Governor's race results in the demise of the straight party option on the Utah election ballot. It is a practice that needs to go.