Publishers Perspective – Politics in rural southern Utah

Publishers Perspective – Politics in rural southern Utah

– By Josh Warburton –

Sometimes, opportunities only present themselves once. Some come just every so often, and that’s the case for me to work in politics in rural southern Utah. Some of you may know that I ran for St. George City Council way back in 1999. I didn’t win, but I had an awesome experience, and I’ve stayed engaged ever since. I ran for office again in 2016, that time for Washington County Commissioner, and between those two runs since, I’ve stayed involved in local politics primarily through volunteering to help on numerous campaigns. Tara Dunn, Brent Holloway, Bart Battista, and Pat Horning were all candidates who I assisted through various volunteer efforts, and in 2020, I was called upon to work on a state-level campaign for Jan Garbett, who was running for Governor that year. The Garbett campaign was the first one that I was actually paid to be a part of. I was brought in kind of midstream, as the campaign was running full steam by the time they hired me, first part-time, then eventually full-time as the Communications Director. All of this experience was invaluable when the latest opportunity presented itself.

I met Davina Smith in 2022 when she was running for the first time for Utah House District 69, a newly redrawn district that includes all of Grand County, in addition to Kane, Garfield, Wayne, San Juan, and most of Emery Counties, as well. I was highly impressed with her, her experience, her willingness to listen to all sides of an issue, and her passion for people and the things that matter to them.

So, in December, when I got an email from a mutual friend mentioning that Davina was looking for a Campaign Manager for this cycle, I gave it some serious thought for about a week. I had to sit with my imposter syndrome, my feelings surrounding giving up a lot of my personal time that a job like that would take, as well as my fears and thoughts about how it would affect my whole life, for ten months plus! But after some serious soul searching and consulting with my amazing girlfriend Annabelle, I decided I’d send Davina an email offering up myself as her “part-time” Campaign Manager. She accepted, and on January 1st, I jumped in with both feet.

The first month or so was really challenging. I was just trying to get my hands wrapped around all the components of the 2022 campaign. By March, I was more or less catching my stride. I had already done events in Kanab, with plans for more in Moab and around the district.

Now, about halfway through this extremely long campaign year, I’m feeling better and better about my prospects but, more importantly, Davina’s prospects of winning. This time, she comes into this cycle with experience. Her opponent opted not to run again for his seat and instead is running a long-shot campaign for Governor. So with the wind to her back, an open seat, a second-time candidate, and the higher turnout of a presidential year, we are feeling optimistic we can get her a win in November.

So while most of our distribution area is outside of HD 69, if you do happen to live in the district please check out DavinaForUT.com to see what Davina stands for, the unique experience she brings to the table, and her vision for the future of Southeast Utah. This could be a rare opportunity to support an amazing candidate with impeccable credentials and a heart of gold. And as we all know, some opportunities only come around every so often. Have a great month!