Summit County GOP and Dems to ask Attorney General to investigate unauthorized ‘GOP voting alert’ text

An “I Voted” sticker is pictured at the Salt Lake County Government Center in Salt Lake City on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. Photo: Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch

The text message was sent to voters on the eve of election day and appears to violate Utah campaign laws

PARK CITY, Utah — A mysterious text message that appeared to endorse two Park City municipal candidates under the banner “GOP Voting Alert” sparked confusion and frustration on the eve of Tuesday’s election — and now both local party leaders are calling for an investigation.

The Summit County Republican Party (SCGOP) issued a statement Monday evening condemning the message, which appeared to promote Jack Rubin for mayor and Jeremy Rubell for City Council. The party says it had no involvement in creating or distributing the text and denounced it as “a deceptive attempt to mislead voters and manipulate the election.”

“This message did not originate from the SCGOP and was not authorized by the party, its officers, the candidate campaigns, or any official Republican committee,” the statement read. “We believe this message was sent by bad actors attempting to create the false appearance of Republican involvement.”

Summit County Democrat Chair Rory Swensen also condemned the text message and said Summit County Democratic Party had no involvement or knowledge of the text circulated Monday evening.

“There are rules around elections, and regardless of where it came from, I think that people need to be held accountable. We have to really prioritize that elections are the rules are followed. Voters need to have confidence in the integrity of our elections,” Muphy said. “Voters deserve transparency, honesty, and confidence that everyone is playing by the same rules and upholding election integrity.”

Party chair Ari Ioannides told TownLift Tuesday morning that early research points to the message coming from a third-party campaign service commonly used in Utah. He said the sender would have needed significant lead time and access to a targeted contact list — one that appeared to reach mostly registered Democrats in Park City.

“Someone must have had an existing list or been working on it for weeks,” Ioannides said. “They also weren’t really smart, because legally they’re required to indicate who they are and who paid for it — and that wasn’t done.”

Ioannides said he personally reached out to Swensen, as well as to Rubin, Rubell, and other campaigns mentioned in local speculation.

“I spoke with the candidates — including Ryan [Dickey] — and they said it didn’t come from their campaigns. I take them at their word,” Ionnides said.

He added that both he and Swensen plan to file a complaint with the Lieutenant Governor’s Office after the election, requesting an investigation into who sent the message and whether it violates campaign communication laws.

Under Utah law, a political advertisement must clearly identify who authorized and paid for it. The text message in question appears to endorse specific candidates yet lacks a legal disclaimer, sponsorship attribution or opt-out statement, which could violate the state’s political-advertising rules.

“This kind of stuff has no place in politics,” Ioannides said. “It muddies the waters and makes people not trust the election. Election integrity is important — when people get messages, it needs to be clear where they’re coming from.”

Monday’s text follows an earlier October 14 message sent by the Utah Democratic Party and Summit County Democrats, which endorsed Tana Toly, Diego Zegarra, and Ryan Dickey. That message was properly labeled and attributed to local party leadership. Swensen said it was paid for by the Utah Democratic Party and was targeted as a “get-out-and-vote” message.

Ioannides said while the GOP previously encouraged voters to “consider” candidates not endorsed by the Democratic Party, it has not endorsed any candidates in Park City’s nonpartisan races.

“We’ve stayed out of it,” he said. “Our policy is that in municipal elections, we remain neutral unless a candidate formally asks for our endorsement. This message was not from us — and it doesn’t help anyone.”

Ballots for Park City’s municipal election must be returned by 8 p.m. on Election Day, November 4.