Utah County municipal ballots have inaccurate information, clerk Aaron Davidson explains why

UTAH COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) — Utah County’s municipal election ballot instructions have some inaccurate and confusing information on them, but Utah County Clerk Aaron Davidson said reprinting them would have cost taxpayers money.

The ballot insert for the 2025 municipal general elections have instructions that require the last four digits of voters’ identification numbers, when that type of verification won’t be implemented until 2026.

Per Utah’s new election law, voters will be required to write the last four digits of their ID number from state IDs, drivers licenses, or if they don’t have either of those, their social security numbers.

Because lawmakers wanted a long runway, by 2029, the last four digits will be the primary method for verifying ballots in Utah. Until then, a signature that matches what’s on file with elections officials is allowed.

“During the primary, Utah County Elections tested this process to help train voters ahead of time,” wrote county Clerk Aaron Davidson in a letter to city recorders explaining the discrepancies. “After the primary, we identified a few challenges and decided to pause that test for the general election.”

Davidson went on to explain that they removed a four-digit box from the ballot envelopes, but the printed instructions still mention it “since they were finalized before the changes were made,” he wrote.

In an interview with ABC4, Davidson said that printing new envelopes just to change them again in 2026 would have cost taxpayers.

“We took advantage of the printing discount and had the instructions printed off for both the (2025 municipal) primary and the general,” said Davidson. “And we just didn’t feel it was physically fiscally prudent to throw those instructions out and have them reprinted. So we sent out the instructions from the primary [in the general] and it does say to put the four digits on, but we figured we’d just address those issues with voters, as they call — [and] just let them know you can add the four digits if you want to at the end of your signature.”

The inaccurate instructions, Davidson said, have prompted some calls and a letter to the cities so they can inform their voters.

The key thing voters need to know is that that until 2029, if they have signed their ballot, their vote will count.

What’s on the instructions sent to Utah County voters

The first page of the ballot insert reads, “Warning: If you have a valid Utah driver license or a valid Utah state identification card, failure to provide the last four digits of the license or card number may result in your ballot not being counted.”

The insert then goes on to say, “You also have the option of providing the last four digits of your social security number as identification. If you do not have any of these identification types, your ballot will still be counted if your signature on the affidavit on this envelope matches your signature on file with the election officer.”

The first line of the insert is the part that’s not true. That last four digits of a voter’s driver’s license, state ID cards, or social security card won’t be required until 2029, per H.B. 300.

The law also says that if a voter does not have a Utah driver license or state ID, then they can use their social security number.

Between 2026 and 2029, ballots will have a space for the last four digits, but that space is not provided yet because elections officials told ABC4 that they don’t have the technology set up to automatically compare a voters last four digits to what’s on file.

On page three, a step-by-step guide to filling out your ballot includes step 2 that says: “Sign your envelope and include the last 4 digits of your Utah Driver License, State Issued ID, or Social Security Number.”

The ballot included no boxes to put in the last four digits of a voter’s ID.

Davidson said that they’ve posted the fixes on their social media and notified the cities and considered sending out an email to every county voter.

“We thought that that would even create more confusion. We haven’t received too many calls, so it’s not sure how much the voters actually read the instructions anyway,” he said.

Davidson also said he’s opposed to the new elections law, alleging that in their “test” of this method during the primary, they found hundreds of four digits from voters that did not match a signature on file. Many people, he argued, know the last four of their sons’ or daughters’ social security number.

“They just need to be a secondary verification process, not the primary verification but right now, the way that the code is written, the four digits is the primary method of verifying the ballot,” said Davidson, who also said he’s taken his concerns to lawmakers.

The sponsor of H.B. 300, Sen. Mike McKell (R-Spanish Fork), had some strong words for Davidson.

“County clerks have been given clear instructions on the new law,” McKell said. “The ID requirement doesn’t take effect until 2029. Normally, I would give someone the benefit of the doubt, but it’s hard to see this as anything other than deliberate. Aaron Davidson has made an effort to politicize the ballot from the first day he took office. It’s concerning that our county clerk is once again sending confusing messages to voters.”

Amelia Hobson contributed to this story.