Since the U.S. Capitol last month, more than 7,600 active Republican voters in Utah have left the GOP, according to reporting from the Salt Lake Tribune. In contrast, about 4,000 voters have left the unaffiliated category and 830 have left the Democratic party.
While it is impossible how many of these voters left the party because of former President Trump’s actions following the 2020 election, this exodus of Republican voters matches national trends. The Copper Courierreports more than 10,000 Arizonians left the party in January while only 2,484 Democrats left the party in the same month.
It is important to note that many Utah voters switched their registration to vote in the state’s Republican primary this year, including prominent Democrats such as former State Senator Jim Debakis, and that some of the current party switching could be due to those voters leaving.