Navigating the Caucus and Convention Landscape

The Utah County Republican Party Podcast features Vice Chair Charles Max Wood, Chair Cristy Henshaw, and state party tech officer Mac Sims discussing caucus and convention outcomes, common criticisms, and why they support the caucus-convention system.

They report about 19,000 statewide caucus registrations and roughly 16,000 credentialed check-ins, noting gaps because Washington County and parts of Davis County did not use the state check-in system; they also cite about 2,000 precinct candidate registrations.

They argue turnout critiques are inconsistent and note low public attendance at non-party debates, while delegate participation and conventions were high (county convention cited at 92%).

They highlight accessibility measures such as preregistration, absentee balloting, declaring candidacy in advance, and a babysitting fund. They contend the system enables informed candidate vetting and grassroots representation, contrasting it with costly signature-gathering (citing examples from statewide and local races) and warning that money would dominate without parties.

They encourage involvement via precinct chairs, delegates, LCCs, and resources like ucrp.org and precinctportal.org ahead of the June 23 primary.