Members upset Utah GOP chief dropped lawsuit

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Republican Party chairman’s decision to drop a lawsuit over the primary process has some members saying they may seek his ouster.

Chairman Rob Anderson announced Wednesday that the party would end its challenge of a state law that allows candidates to bypass the traditional nominating process for a primary election.

In response, some members of the party’s 180-member State Central Committee said they are considering a push for his removal during its Saturday meeting in Park City.

The committee’s last vote on the matter ordered the lawsuit to continue, and committee member Don Guymon told the Salt Lake Tribune that only the panel has the authority to end it.

“The State Central Committee is the governing body of the party, and we will make decisions regarding the lawsuit,” Guymon said. “We will hold the chairman accountable if he ends this lawsuit.”

The party’s top four officers met with the budget committee and voted Wednesday to end the lawsuit. Anderson said the action was permitted by party bylaws.

The lawsuit is pending in a federal appeals court after the state GOP lost in lower courts. Anderson said the lawsuit has created a deficit that has lasted three years, and the party also has $323,000 in unpaid legal bills.

A group of party members who have formed a nonprofit called Grassroots Republic announced Friday that they had secured money to pay the court costs.

The GOP chairman said the fundraising won’t change the decision to end the lawsuit and that attorney bills are not the only way the lawsuit is costing the party money. GOP donors who disagree with the lawsuit have refused to donate to the party until the legal fight is over, Anderson said.