"Looking back, it becomes clear that this situation is about fairness in the process," Lowe said. "People can accept the outcome of an election — even if it does not favor their candidate — if they feel that the procedures are implemented in a fair and neutral manner. In this case, many voters did not feel that they were treated fairly; as a result, there persists a great sense of injustice among these voters, who still are distressed by the feeling that their votes simply did not count, and for no good reason."

The ACLU of Utah ultimately decided against filing legal action in response to the received complaints. Instead, leaders said the organization worked proactively with local legislators, election officials and coalition partners to draft legislation to cure some of the problems that led to the voting irregularities.

The ACLU of Utah advocated for a bill to tighten up the state's laws regarding voter challenges. The bill did not pass, but the organization plans to promote its passage again during the 2009 Legislative session.

To download a copy of the ACLU report, go to: www.acluutah.org/AssuringVoterConfidence.pdf. The download includes a copy of HB 175.

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E-mail: lynn@desnews.com