Fewer Summit County voters participated in the primary election last month than in previous years, and county officials are speculating the lower turnout is tied to the state Legislature’s decision to implement districted County Council seats.
The 2026 election cycle is the first time districts have come into play in Summit County. Seats in two — District 4 in the Snyderville Basin and District 5 in the Jeremy Ranch and Pinebrook neighborhoods — are on the ballot this year, but only Democrats signed up to compete for the open positions.
Voter turnout hovered around 37% this year compared to 2024, with 43%, and 2020, with 65%.
The voter pool for the primary election was already narrowed by limiting the County Council seats to districts instead of allowing at-large candidates, but the lack of any Republican candidates further slimmed the field. Registered Democrats living in District 4 or District 5 automatically received a ballot, but unaffiliated or Republican voters in those districts would have needed to request one weeks before Election Day.
Any voters living outside the boundaries of the two districts were ineligible to participate in the County Council race.
Interim Summit County Clerk Malena Stevens said voters were confused about the County Council process this year, with many residents asking questions about why they weren’t able to participate.
“I think all of that impacted voter turnout and the numbers that we saw,” Stevens said. “Looking at County Council races decided by 500 to 700 votes is something that we haven’t encountered before in this community.”
However, Republicans countywide still participated in the GOP primary to choose U.S. House District 3 and State House District 59 candidates, who will appear on the November ballot. Approximately 3,800 Republicans filled out and returned ballots to the Clerk’s Office, compared to 1,530 Democrats.
Stevens said turnout for Republicans and Democrats this year was lower than in 2024 and 2020, the most recent election cycles in which each held a primary. More than 5,000 Republicans and 2,600 Democrats voted in the 2024 primary, while 6,900 Republicans and 3,900 Democrats voted in the 2020 primary.
The presidential races in 2020 and 2024 inspired voter turnout, but Stevens said limiting the field with districts and changing mail-in ballot deadlines likely impacted this year’s election cycle.
However, Stevens said it’s still too early to attribute lower voter turnout numbers to just the county’s new districts because it will take a few election cycles to see the long-term effect of the change.
“I think it’ll be interesting … as we go through different cycles that have County Council candidates who are both Democrat and Republican,” Stevens said. “I don’t know exactly what that’s going to look like as we move forward, but I think it will be different when we have general contests versus primary contests for those reasons.”
Stevens said dozens of ballots were ineligible to be counted this year, too, because the state Legislature recently changed deadlines. Instead of requiring ballots be postmarked by 8 p.m. on Election Day, the Clerk’s Office now must have all ballots in hand by 8 p.m., meaning any ballots that arrived late were discounted.
Specifically, Stevens said 102 ballots were received after the 8 p.m. deadline.
“People have to opt-in to vote by mail starting in 2029, so they won’t automatically get a ballot,” Stevens said. “I think this is a community collaboration as to how we can best make sure that every person who is eligible has the opportunity to vote, not just in theory, but also practically, that they understand how to go about it and where.”
Local attorney Christie Babalis won the District 4 race with 436 votes, or 53%. Her competitor, John Kucera, was a former member of the Snyderville Basin Planning Commission and earned 386 votes, or 47%.
Incumbent and County Council Chair Canice Harte won his reelection bid in District 5 with 361 votes, or 51%. His challenger, Park City Board of Education President Meredith Reed, earned 346 votes, or 49%.
The Summit County Council canvassed the election on Tuesday and finalized the primary results.