Mormon President Has to Prove His Eligibility to Vote

SALT LAKE CITY —  Mormon Church President Ezra Taft Benson was surprised Tuesday when election judges could not find his name on the list of registered voters.

The 89-year-old Benson, arriving early to cast his ballot at a downtown Salt Lake City polling site, moved earlier this year and had registered to vote in his new district.

However, church spokesman Don LeFevre said, for some reason the Mormon leader’s name was left off the computer printout of registered voters.

LeFevre said Benson was one of the first in line at the voting site and was able to vote after his registration card was retrieved from his home and shown to the election judges.

“They didn’t have him on the printout, so he had to send someone home to get his registration card and follow the rules,” LeFevre said. “There was no problem, he did get to vote.”