SALT LAKE CITY — Lt. Governor Deidre Henderson, Utah's top elections officer, forcefully pushed back against people who spread misinformation and attack the state's election systems and the people who run them.
"Attacks on our elections and the people who run them are attacks on the political institutions that exist to protect our liberty and free government," she said Thursday in a speech at the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics.
Lt. Gov. Henderson defended Utah's system as one that was crafted with bipartisan support to ensure easy access but also maintaining security. But she warned it is coming under attack.
"This is different than legitimate criticism, calls for reform, expressions of grievance, or dissent," she told the crowd. "Attacks against our political institutions are not meant to reform, but to undermine. They are not designed to improve processes or laws, but to subvert them; to instill fear and doubt, harass and intimidate, cause confusion, delay, and chaos. And they always serve to advance a political agenda, not the public interest."
She spoke about what she called "election vigilantes" who are seeking to overwhelm and disrupt the election system.
Watch Lt. Gov. Henderson's full speech below:
"Until recently, it has been easy to dismiss these efforts as fringe," Lt. Gov. Henderson said. "But I have grave concerns that the volume and intensity of their destructive efforts are seeping into the center."
Lt. Gov. Henderson was recently the target of a threatening letter with a suspicious powder that is currently under investigation by the FBI. County clerks across Utah who administer elections have faced threats, intimidation and harassment, she said.
Speaking to reporters afterward, the Lt. Governor said with a big election a few weeks away the state is taking steps to ensure election safety and security.
"We’ve got cybersecurity measures that we’ve been implementing and preparing for. We’ve got physical security measures we’ve been implementing and preparing for," she said, adding that county clerks have been sent personal protective equipment as well.
Utah's election system has repeatedly been held up as a model. A reliable red state that utilizes vote-by-mail (more than 97% of voters used a mail-in ballot in the last primary election), voters overwhelmingly like it. But delays in reporting results in hotly-contested races has led to some questions and legal challenges. All of this is part of the system to ensure votes are counted.
"We’re processing ballots as quickly as we can but there are procedures in place as we all know," said Lannie Chapman, the Salt Lake County Clerk. "I’m going to verify every signature before I scan that ballot to make sure every vote counts."
Lt. Gov. Henderson has emerged as a national figure on instilling confidence in elections. FOX 13 News profiled her efforts in January as she encouraged county clerks to open their doors and invite the public in to see how elections are run and votes are counted.
"It is just not politically popular, especially for someone in my political party to stand up for elections. It’s just not," she told reporters on Thursday. "So, we don’t score political points by speaking truth in elections in my party. And that’s hard. I’ve had to develop an attitude, a damn the torpedoes attitude."
County clerks have found that when people show up to see how the election process is run, they do leave with confidence.
"Ninety-nine percent of the people who walk through our door a skeptic? Leave saying 'Wow, I had no idea the level of control you have in place,'" said Weber County Clerk Ricky Hatch.
In her speech, the Lt. Governor urged voters to consider the source of their information and "doubt the doubters." She urged people to commit now to accept the results of the election, acknowledging that sometimes their preferred candidate loses. She also warned voters that they're in charge of their ballot.
"Go to vote.utah.gov to register to vote, update your address, learn about what is on your ballot, and sign up to get notifications sent straight to your phone so you will know when your clerk mails your ballot, receives your ballot, and counts your ballot," she said.
Lt. Gov. Henderson told reporters she would also like to see others speak out in support of Utah's election system.
"I would love to see more elected officials step up in defense of our system. Because it’s not politically popular to do so in our state," she said. "It’s politically popular to say the buzzwords or say nothing. I need them to start saying things to instill confidence, not sow doubt."
