Big day for Utah's GOP

Today is primary election day in Utah — the polls opened at 7 a.m. and will close at 8 p.m. And the political future of dozens of candidates, mostly Republicans, hang on voters' punch card pins.

The main races are between Nolan Karras and Jon Huntsman Jr. in the Republican governor's contest, Tim Bridgewater and John Swallow in the 2nd Congressional District, and Rep. Chris Cannon and Matt Throckmorton in the 3rd District.

Unofficial but complete results in those major races and other contests in the state will be published in Wednesday's editions of the Deseret Morning News. To find your voting place, call your local county clerk's office.

Democrats have no major contests today, although there is a Democratic primary in a Rose Park state Senate district, as well as county council and commission contests in Summit, Wasatch and Wayne counties.

This could be the last Utah primary in which voters cast their ballot by punching out a hole in a paper ballot hoping for no hanging chads. Come 2006, by federal law, Utah must have a new electronic voting system — most likely to be some kind of touch-screen apparatus.

Over the weekend and through today, GOP candidates in the governor's race, and 2nd and 3rd congressional districts, tried to turn out their supporters. And telephones were ringing Monday as campaigns worked to answer voters' questions and get them to the right polls.

The closest race is between Swallow and Bridgewater in the 2nd District, which includes the east side of Salt Lake County and counties to the east, south and southwest.

A Dan Jones & Associates poll conducted for the Deseret Morning News and KSL-TV published Sunday has the race a statistical tie when the poll's margin of error is considered. Nearly a third of the voters were still undecided.

Every vote really counts, Bridgewater campaign manager Alan Crooks said Monday.

"I think Tim wins 52-48 percent," Crooks said.

Not surprisingly, Tim Garon, Swallow's campaign manager, sees it differently: "We think John's message is reaching people, and we believe he wins by 5 percentage points."

Voter turnout should be around 19 percent statewide, said Jones, who has polled in Utah for 30 years.

"We hope it is that high," said Crooks. "But the interest in the governor's race has waned" with Huntsman being so far ahead of Karras in the polls, "and that could bring the turnout down."