Petition to Attorney General Reyes to Commence Independent Investigation of a Potential Violation of Election Law by Governor Gary Herbert

General Reyes,

The recent admission by Governor Gary Herbert that he encouraged Thomas Wright to withdraw from the GOP gubernatorial race and endorse Lieutenant Governor Spencer Cox, who has been endorsed by Herbert, and the accompanying news reports that his effort included an inducement to withdraw in the form of soliciting financial support for a possible 2022 U.S. Senatorial bid by Wright raises questions about whether a state statute was violated. That statute prohibits the use of an inducement to encourage a candidate to withdraw from the race. We would think the governor should call on you to conduct an investigation to clear his name if he has not violated the statute. But he has not done so.

Therefore, we the undersigned call on you to undertake an investigation of this incident to determine whether a Utah statute was violated by Governor Gary Herbert.