Utah voters approve Amendment A in preliminary results, ending newspaper requirement for constitutional amendments

SALT LAKE CITY — Early returns suggest Utah voters are on track to approve Amendment A, a constitutional amendment that would remove the mandate for future constitutional amendments to appear in newspapers in every county for two months prior to an election, as preliminary tallies indicate 60% support and 40% opposition among the more than 580,000 ballots counted thus far, per preliminary Utah election results updated shortly before 9:30 p.m.

Amendment a Leads 60-40 in Preliminary Returns

The early tally edges votes for Amendment A ahead of votes against it by a 60-40 margin. It remains unclear how many votes are left to count, and all election results are not final until the state’s board of canvassers votes to certify them when it meets on Nov. 23.

From Newspapers to Publication “in a Manner Provided by Statute”

Rather than mandating that proposed constitutional amendments appear in newspapers, Amendment A stipulates that future amendments must be publicized “in a manner provided by statute.” The proposal would additionally alter the required notice period from “two months” to “60 days” right before an election, a change designed to clarify precisely when the notices need to be accessible.

Utah voters show early support for Amendment A, oppose Amendment B in preliminary results

Prompted by a 2024 Court Ruling

Lawmakers turned their attention to the matter in 2024 following a ruling by a Utah district court judge who struck down that year’s Amendment D, pointing in part to the inadequate publicity given to the amendment before the election. That amendment would have given lawmakers the power to overturn ballot initiatives passed by voters. A resolution proposing the new amendment aimed to fix that problem and passed the Legislature unanimously in 2025.

“That came to light during some recent court decisions that kind of highlighted that it’s supposed to be in physical, print newspapers,” Rep. Anthony Loubet, R-Kearns, told lawmakers while presenting the resolution to a House committee in early 2025. “Nowadays, that’s not where people get their information.”

Utah election results are coming in

Companion Bill Sets New Publication Rules

The resolution was approved alongside a bill that would codify new rules for publishing proposed amendments. Under HB481, the Legislature would be obligated to post the text of amendments on the state’s Public Notice Website and on the Legislature’s website, and the legislation would become effective Jan. 1, 2027, provided voters approve Amendment A.