Trump says 'we should stop' Utah mail-in voting

By Jasper Ward

WASHINGTON, June 18 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that something should be done to ‌stop mail-in voting in Utah ahead of the state's ‌primaries next week.

"It seems as though the Great State of Utah, which I ​won each time, and handily, is going to the All Mail In Ballot format of Colorado, and the rest, that always head LEFT, as soon as the move is made," Trump wrote on Truth ‌Social.

He added, "We should stop ⁠Utah from doing this."

Utah and Colorado are among fewer than a dozen U.S. states that allow all ⁠elections to be conducted entirely by mail, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The Republican president said, without evidence, that mail-in ​ballots would ​provide Democrats an opportunity to ​cheat.

Utah's lieutenant governor, who oversees ‌elections in the state, and the Republican Party in Utah did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The state's Democratic Party said it opposes any federal effort to roll back vote-by-mail in Utah, calling Trump's comments "insulting" to residents of the state.

Trump, who himself voted ‌by mail earlier this year, has ​repeatedly raised issue with mail-in ballots.

In March, ​he signed an executive ​order tightening rules on mail-in voting nationwide, including directing ‌his administration to compile a list ​of confirmed U.S. ​citizens eligible to vote in each state.

Trump directed the U.S. Justice Department last month to investigate what he alleged was ​an "illegal" move by ‌Maryland to send out 500,000 mail-in ballots, a claim ​that was rejected by state officials.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward ​in Washington; editing by Michelle Nichols )