Candidates in Iron, Kane, and Washington Counties file to run
A slew of candidates have filed to run in the local 2018 election in Iron County, Washington County, and Kane County with numerous incumbents running unopposed and just a handful of non-Republicans having filed between the three counties.
2018 Washington County, Utah candidates
Washington County had just a few surprises at Thursday’s filing deadline, including sitting county commissioner Zackary Renstrom (Seat A) not filing for reelection and the other county commissioner, Victor Iverson, running unopposed for Seat B. In addition to the incumbent Iverson, Robert E. Ford is running as a Democrat for commission Seat A as are two other Republicans, including former St. George City Councilman Gil Almquist. Almquist unsuccessfully ran for commission in 2016 but served in the St. George City Council for many years. There is also an interesting race in Utah House District 75 where appointed representative Walt Brooks will face off against Keith R. Kelsch on the Independent American party ticket and Michael A Gardner, who is running as a Libertarian. There is no Democrat running in that race. Washington County saw an abysmal 45.7 percent voter participation in the last partisan non-presidential election year, 2014. See the complete list of Washington County, Utah candidates on this spreadsheet.
2018 Kane County, Utah candidates
Lara Clayson — the daughter of current Kane County Commissioner Dirk Clayson, who is not seeking reelection — is running as a Republican for Kane County Commission’s Seat B. One Democrat, John Casperson, is also running for that seat. Both Clayson and Casperson submitted letters to the public detailing their visions and qualifications to The Independent recently. The other candidates declined participation. There is also a higher ratio of female to male candidates in Kane County than in Iron or Washington Counties. See the complete list of Kane County, Utah candidates on this spreadsheet.
2018 Iron County, Utah candidates
Only Republicans are running in Iron County. Sheriff Mark Gower declined to run for re-election, and four Republicans seek to fill his position. See the complete list of Iron County, Utah candidates on this spreadsheet.
Utah State House and Senate Races
There is room for significant change in the Utah State House and Senate with Libertarian, Democratic, and Independent contenders running alongside Republicans for most of the Utah State House and Senate seats.
Marsha Holland decided to run as an unaffiliated candidate for Utah House District 73, where controversial San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman also seeks election. Along with Republican Kelly Stowell, they compete for Rep. Mike Noel’s soon-to-be-vacated seat.
Rep. Chris Stewart will defend his position from six challengers, four of whom are affiliated with the Democratic, Libertarian, and United Utah Parties. Among them is Mary Burkett, a resident of St. George who is running as a Republican.
“This is an unprecedented number of candidates,” said Utah Democratic Party officials statement March 15. “More than half of the candidates are women, people of color, and young people. The future of Utah is one where local representation is a priority instead of special projects and message bills.”
Of note locally in the race for Sen. Orrin Hatch’s Senate seat is St. George attorney Larry Meyers’s competition with former U.S. presidential candidate and Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, who are both running as Republicans. Southern Utahns will be forced to choose between a high-profile but embattled celebrity politician who has only recently moved to Utah and a lesser-known core conservative from Washington County.
See the complete list of Utah House and Senate candidates on this spreadsheet.
Articles related to “Utah candidates in Iron, Kane, and Washington Counties file to run”
An open letter from Kane County Commission candidate Lara Clayson
An open letter from Kane County Commission candidate John Casperson
