June 24, 2023

A) Purpose

1. The sole purpose of this Special Nominating Convention shall be to nominate Republican Party candidate(s) for U.S. House of Representatives District 2.

B) Call

1. The Utah Republican Party Special Nominating Convention for District 2 shall convene at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 24, 2023, at a location to be determined.

C) Rules of Order

1. The State Party Constitution and Bylaws, these Rules and the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order shall govern this Convention. These rules shall govern any conflict with Robert's Rules.

D) Order of Business

1. The order of business of this convention shall follow the agenda sent out in the call for the Special Nominating Convention.
2. All challenges to the qualifications of an individual delegate to serve must be received in writing by 5:00 p.m. at State Party Headquarters two days prior to the day of the Special Convention.
3. The Credentials Committee shall attempt to contact challenged delegates to resolve any disputes and make a report for Convention adoption.
4. Debate time for the adoption of the rules shall be limited to 10 minutes.

E) Seating and Admission

1. Members of the public and media will be admitted to the convention hall to view the proceedings, as long as they follow proper conduct and the directions of the Chair, Sergeant of Arms, and Rules committee members.
2. Only delegates may participate in the business of the Convention; however, the Convention Chair may invite any individual to address the Convention.
3. In the hall, seating shall be organized by county with a separate area for visitors and media.
4. Each delegate to this convention will be issued a credential card that is non-transferable and must be displayed at the time of balloting and any voting.
5. The list of delegates maintained by the credentials committee is deemed to be the official list of delegates for the convention.
6. Any changes to the delegate list must be reported to the credentials committee by the respective county chair or their pre-designated representative by the deadline to change delegates.

F) Recognition to Speak

1. A delegate must state his or her name and county and be recognized by the chair before speaking on convention business.
2. No delegate may speak more than once or longer than two minutes upon the same question, unless allowed by a majority of the convention.

G) Candidate Rules and Requirements

1. Only Republican candidates who have properly filed for party office who meet the requirements of the Utah Republican Party Bylaws shall be considered by the Special Convention. In accordance with Party Bylaws, all candidates shall have filed a letter of intent and disclosure statement at State Party Headquarters no later than 5:00 p.m. seven days prior to the Special Convention.
2. Signage and distribution of literature rules shall be established by the rules committee, convention officers and the host facility.
3. The Candidate or his/her representative shall sign a document which states they have read and understand the CANDIDATE RULES AND REQUIREMENTS.
4. All Candidates, special interest groups, and other organized groups shall pay a $500 refundable cleaning deposit before the convention.
5. Anyone distributing materials at the Convention shall be responsible to remove their materials after the Convention, from the facility and the parking area. Clean-up is required in order to have the $500 refundable cleaning fee returned.
6. Basic rules apply to all who have paid the $500 fee. (The intent is to have fairness and to treat all equally.)
7. Candidates will observe proper decorum.

H) Nominations

1. Opposed candidates shall be allowed 6 minutes for presentation.
2. Candidate speeches may not be used to personally disparage any campaign or candidate.
3. Candidates are not required to have a nomination or second but may if they so desire. The total time limit remains the same regardless.
4. The order of presentation shall be determined by random drawing.
5. The intent and goal of the convention is to have a fair process through which all candidates are treated equally.
6. In Multiple Round Balloting, prior to a second round of balloting, remaining candidates shall be allowed 2 minutes each, with 1 minute for candidates in any subsequent rounds if they desire.

I) Physical Arrangements

1. Candidates and organizations are responsible for observance of these rules by their staff, campaigns, committees, supporters and delegates. Violations may result in forfeiture of deposits and removal of all signs of the violating group or individual. Each candidate or organization is responsible for the clean-up of anything produced by, distributed by, or bearing the name of that candidate or organization.
2. Candidates and organizations will have access to the convention hall as scheduled by the host facility and the Utah Republican Party.
3. Signage: Schedule for setup and sign take-down will be available from the State Republican Headquarters prior to the Special Convention.
4. Candidates and organizations may put up their signage no earlier than scheduled by the Utah Republican Party.
5. Sign arrangement must remain in designated areas only and must comply with facility rules as well as instructions from Utah Republican Party. Outdoor signs must comply with host facility rules and guidelines. The Utah Republican Party staff, the Rules Committee members, and the host facility staff may move any signs that do not comply with the rules or that are not in designated areas.
6. No signs may appear in or around the staging area of the Convention.
7. Signs and campaign materials may not block any exit, service outlets, or fire extinguishers.
8. No helium balloons of any kind are allowed.
9. Nothing may be affixed to any surface at the convention center.
10. Booth space may be rented from the party. All booth space, including the setting up of any tables inside or outside the convention center, must be obtained from or approved by the Utah Republican Party.
11. Booths shall not be taken down until the Convention is officially adjourned.
12. Booth location will be chosen by lottery.
13. Distribution of food must follow the rules of the host facility.
14. No confetti is allowed in the convention facilities.
15. The Utah Republican Party may make alterations or amendments to this section of the rules as needed to meet demands of the host facility and the Party.
16. There shall be no restrictions on the distribution of printed material, except that materials may not be pre-distributed on the chairs in the convention hall. All printed material shall have a disclaimer identifying the responsible person or organization and a valid phone number that must be clearly printed on the material.

J) Quorum

1. A quorum for the purpose of conducting business shall consist of any number of delegates attending the special nominating convention.

K) General Voting Rules

1. Other than the election of candidates or other balloting as noticed in the special convention call, voting shall be by voice, by a show of delegate credentials, paper, electronic keypad, or scantron ballot.
2. When it is clear that there has been a full vote and there can be no reasonable doubt as to which side prevailed, the Convention Chair may not recognize a call for division.
3. Unopposed candidates shall be declared the winner by the Chair.
4. In contested races, candidate names shall appear on the ballot by random drawing before the Convention. Each letter of the alphabet shall be randomly drawn. The order in which the letters are drawn shall be the order in which they appear on the ballot. The names of the candidates shall be alphabetized within each individual letter group. The result of this random drawing will also be used to determine speaking order. The Special Convention will use the alphabet drawn for the 2023 Utah Republican Party Organizing Convention.
5. After Candidate Speeches, voting will be conducted when the chair calls for the vote.
6. It is the prerogative of the chair to open and close balloting at appropriate times.
7. Voting will be done by paper ballot or electronic device.
8. Electronic Voting: Delegates will be given the opportunity to verify their electronic device is working properly by conducting test votes. If an electronic device is deemed faulty the delegate will exchange it for one that works properly. Upon verification, delegates shall cast their ballots electronically in the contested races that are balloted through electronic voting.
9. Candidates shall be elected using a single or multiple round election method. Voting will continue until one candidate meets the requirements set by the Bylaws and Utah State Law.
10. The Special Nominating Convention shall use the same voting method as was used at the prior state nominating convention, which was multiple round voting at the 2022 Nominating Convention.

L) COUNTING ROOM & RESULTS

1. The Elections Committee Chairperson is responsible for the ballot counting room, poll watchers and electronic devices.
2. The Elections Committee Chair shall be responsible for the security of the ballots, ballot boxes, the accuracy of the count, and directing the access and conduct of all persons within the ballot counting room.
3. The Elections Chairperson is responsible for any complaints and has the authority to take any concerns to the Convention Chair.
4. Cameras, cell phones and other recording and communication devices are not allowed in the ballot counting room.
5. Each opposed candidate shall be permitted to have one poll watcher. This observer may not leave the ballot counting room before the vote tally for that office has been announced to the Convention.
6. Ballot counting shall not commence until after polls have been closed for at least five (5) minutes.
7. Challenges to balloting must be made to the Convention Chair or Designee before that time expires.
8. Official tally sheets shall be used to record each counted vote, and will be kept with the supporting ballots. These materials shall be preserved by the Party Officers in a secure location for at least five (5) business days following the Convention.
9. In the event that three or more candidates are nominated for the same office, more than one candidate may be eliminated in each round, provided the sum of the votes received by the candidates to be eliminated does not exceed the number of votes received by the next highest candidates, and that at least two candidates remain on the ballot. The two top candidates shall participate in additional rounds of voting until the required vote threshold is met.
10. Any challenges to the counting process must be made to the Elections Committee Chair before the election results of that race are announced.
11. Any candidate requesting a recount of an election must file a request in writing to the Elections Committee Chair by 5:00 pm two (2) business days following the Special Convention.
12. Recounts may only be brought if they might legitimately affect the outcome of the election.
13. If a coin toss was used to determine the winner, no challenge or recount will be accepted.
14. If delegates lose their electronic device or paper ballot, they will not receive a replacement and will have no means of voting.
15. Paper ballots will only be provided to those whose keypads (if used) that malfunction during the balloting period, preventing them from voting.
16. If voting electronically, a unique id and the votes associated with it shall be posted online so delegates can verify their votes. This information should be posted on the party’s website as soon as practical and should remain available for at least two weeks.
17. Interfering with the elections in any way or form will not be tolerated. Anybody found seeking to interfere with the elections in any way, will be removed from the convention and referred for disciplinary action.