Campaigns in Utah County lacking pizazz
Campaign signs are about as rare as beverages with caffeine at LaVell Edwards Stadium, and residents seem to be more concerned about the health of Brigham Young University quarterback John Beck than who will occupy Utah County Commission Seat B.
That's because having Beck suited up and playing for the Cougars can be the difference between a win or a loss. In the Utah County political arena, however, candidates in the general election usually just need an "R" next to their name to secure a "W."
It's all about competition, political experts say, and it's missing from the state legislative and county races that will be decided Nov. 7 by Utah County voters.
"Normally, excitement and visibility are generated by competition," said Kelly Patterson, director of Brigham Young University's Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy. "Candidates and parties spend money and mobilize voters when seats and offices are at stake. When they're not at stake, research shows that little money gets spent on activities we normally associate with campaign enthusiasm."
Even though a little less than half of Utah County's registered voters are affiliated with the Republican Party, 29 percent of them cast straight Republican ballots in 2004.
Twelve other races have already been decided — even before ballots are cast.
In eight of those, candidates did not face opponents either at convention or from another political party. The four other races were settled either at the Republican convention or in the Republican primary.
Experts say, however, that most of the races on the November ballot — if not all — are little more than a formality before a Republican sweep.
"This is a one-party county, so the action is all in the (Republican) primary and the convention," said Quin Monson, a political science professor at BYU. "There's not a lot of electoral competition in the general election. (Competition) is what generates excitement and campaign spending."
Jessica Connors, organizer of the Utah County-based nonpartisan voter-education group Citizen's Resource, says the general election doesn't seem to be on voters' minds.
"My opinion is that there is a general prevailing attitude that the majority of people vote for one party and that it's at the primary elections for that party where all the major decisions are made," Connors said.
But that doesn't excuse voters from doing their civic duty on Nov. 7, she said.
"I think it's important that we don't let it be quiet season," Connors said.
Monson said the proposed quarter-cent sales tax increase to fund commuter rail and other transportation projects in Utah County may be the main reason voters head to the polls in November.
"If there's anything in Utah County that's going to generate some interest, it's the transportation question," he said.
E-mail: jpage@desnews.com
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