As primary ballots begin to hit mailboxes, Iron County candidates face each other in debate forum

Candidate signs dot the hill outside Southern Utah University's Hunter Conference Center, Cedar City, Utah, June 13, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

CEDAR CITY — Primary candidates in five Iron County races squared off Monday night in a moderated debate hosted by Southern Utah University’s Leavitt Center for Politics and Public Service.

A crowd of approximately 300 people filled the Great Hall in the Hunter Conference Center as each set of candidates fielded several questions, including some that had been submitted by members of the public. Each candidate was given a one-minute time limit for their responses, although they were generally allowed a few more seconds to finish a sentence or thought after their red card went up. The student moderators who took turns reading the questions were Olivia Johnson, Thomas Cloward and Jakob Gertler. 

See the story below for highlights and recaps of the five debates, each of which lasted approximately 20 minutes. To watch the entire program, visit the Leavitt Center’s Facebook page or click here.

Ballots already started going out in the mail toward the end of last week and should be showing up in voters’ mailboxes within the next few days if they haven’t already, according to Iron County Clerk Jon Whittaker. The primary ballots are being sent only to voters who are registered Republicans, and/or to those who live within Iron County School Board districts 4 and 5. Those two non-partisan school board races are to be narrowed from three candidates to two via the primary.

Voters have until June 28 to return their ballots either by postal mail (must be postmarked no later than June 27) or by dropping them off at designated ballot box locations. The voter registration deadline is Friday, June 17. If you have questions about your ballot or did not receive one after this week, contact the Iron County Clerk’s office at 435-477-8340. For additional information, visit the elections page on the county’s website.

State Senate District 28

In Utah Senate District 28, incumbent Sen. Evan Vickers (R-Cedar City) is being challenged by Patrick Larson. The pair took turns fielding a series of eight questions, in addition to giving short opening and closing statements.

Utah State Senate District 28 challenger Patrick Larson and incumbent Sen. Evan Vickers during debate hosted at Southern Utah University’s Hunter Conference Center, Cedar City, Utah, June 13, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

During his opening remarks, Larson said, “The reason that I am running is because over the last two years, I felt like our constitutional rights were stripped from us. We were asked to be muzzled. They muzzled our children. They told us there were things that we couldn’t do. They call us terrorists and all kinds of things. We saw our constitutional rights basically being trampled under.”

Vickers, a pharmacist and business owner, cited his experience in the Utah Legislature, including serving the past four years as Senate majority leader.

“I’ve earned the respect of my colleagues and their influence there,” he said. “But I think, more importantly, it means that this district has had a strong voice in this legislative leadership. I’m a proud constitutional conservative Republican. I’m fiscally conservative. I believe in low taxes and limited government.”

Vickers and Larson then took turns responding to an array of questions that covered topics such as health care, poverty rates, water, drug overdoses, population growth, affordable housing and higher education funding.

Regarding that last topic, Vickers said although he didn’t have time to explain the difference between the different funds, “Just know that … going forward, we will always commit to funding education, at least as long as I’m there.”

Such would be the case even if a constitutional amendment were to remove the educational earmark, he said. 

“We’re the only state in the country that has it,” he said. “But we’ll continue to see the bigger portion of our budget going toward education.”

Iron County Republican primary ballot, which also includes a school board race, Cedar City, Utah, June 14, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Larson said that while he supports K-12 public school funding, he thinks higher education should be a personal choice.

“To be honest with you, I don’t know how much the state should be putting money into that,” he said, referring to higher education. “I didn’t go to college. I know many people that didn’t go to college, but they went to trade schools.”

“I see a lot of people with a diploma that aren’t working or that can’t work or can’t get a job,” Larson added. “Higher education should be a personal choice. And again, if you’re going to put money towards higher education, (it) should be available for everybody in higher education, so that everybody is on an equal playing field.”

In his closing remarks, Larson reiterated his opposition to the face coverings that were mandated during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“If I go up to the Utah state Senate, I am there for the freedom,” Larson said. “I am there because we were muzzled. We were masked and we were tortured for the last two years. And I just want to make sure that that never ever happens again.”

Vickers also mentioned the pandemic during his closing remarks, saying, “The Wall Street Journal just did a survey of all states; they rated us No. 1 on how we handled the pandemic.”

“My favorite habit from Steve Covey is to seek first to understand and then be understood,” Vickers added. “I’ve learned I have to listen to all sides before I make decisions, and always go back to what is best for my constituents.”

Iron County School Board District 4

In school board District 4, challengers Stephanie Hill and Mary Foremaster seek to unseat incumbent Dale Brinkerhoff, who did not participate in Monday’s debate.

Iron County School Board District 4 candidates Stephanie Hill and Mary Foremaster during debate hosted at Southern Utah University’s Hunter Conference Center, Cedar City, Utah, June 13, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Hill and Foremaster each spoke of their qualifications; both are experienced educators as well as mothers with children in the school system.

Responding to a question about school safety, Hill said, “I am perfectly open to the idea of educators who would volunteer for them to carry (a gun) at school. There’s absolutely nothing more critical than the safety of our children, second only to literacy.”

During her response, Foremaster noted that teachers who want to carry a concealed gun can already do so. She also said she supports having armed law enforcement officers on school campuses.

“But I don’t want our kids to go to school in a fortress, either,” Foremaster added. “And so that concerns me, and I think we all need to look in the mirror and say, what can I do to help? What can I do to help this epidemic in society, and see if there’s something we can do individually?”

In response to a question about teacher retention, Foremaster said one key is to take unnecessary political battles out of the picture.

“We don’t need it to be a dogfight. We need to work together,” she said. “We need to support our teachers.”

Answering the same question, Hill said, “I would say that attrition is almost exclusively due to a poor curriculum and teachers having no control over their curriculum.”

“I would bring back the specific curriculum that we had for 100 years and tweak it with modern day issues,” Hill added. “Attrition has almost exclusively to do with teachers having zero voice over their classrooms. We need to return teaching to the teachers, away from the federal government.”

Iron County School Board District 5

In school board District 5, three challengers are vying for the seat currently occupied by board president Michelle Lambert, who is not running for reelection.

Iron County School Board District 5 candidates Tiffiney Christiansen, Billy Davis and Steve Merrill (on screen) prepare for debate hosted at Southern Utah University’s Hunter Conference Center, Cedar City, Utah, June 13, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

The three candidates are Tiffiney Christiansen, Billy Davis and Steve Merrill. Although Merrill wasn’t able to be there in person on Monday, he participated via videoconference.

The trio took turns answering questions about mental health, school safety, working with other school board members and whether teachers should be required to post all of their lesson materials online for parents to review.

In regard to school safety, Christiansen said, “We definitely can’t just roll the dice and hope that it will never happen here.”

Christiansen said she talked to one teacher who said, “Please don’t arm teachers … You don’t trust us with curriculum, (but) you trust us with a gun?”

“But one thing that was universal in most people I talked to, was mental health needs to be addressed, and it needs to be taught,” she added. “And that is something that everyone agreed on, was a big issue in solving this problem. But who really is responsible for it? We all are.”

Merrill said schools need to focus on students’ mental health in order to keep future school shootings from happening.

“The majority of these school shootings are former students coming in to hurt people who they felt they were hurt by,” he said. “So I think the responsibility falls on, to some large extent, us, but five years earlier than an incident happens.”

Davis also emphasized the importance of school safety.

“We need to be protecting the kids,’ he said. “They are our most valuable resource. I know that more needs to be done.”

“I think that it’s definitely necessary to consider having teachers be armed,” Davis said. “I understand that there are those who do not want to be armed. They don’t want that responsibility. I think that we need to consider options like non-lethal methods of protection.”

“I know that spending money is not always a popular thing to do,” he added. “But when it comes to our kids, we have to go back and look at that. We’ve got to spend some more money on our schools and protect them.”

Iron County Commission Seat B

In what is arguable the most contentious local race, incumbent County Commissioner Paul Cozzens seeks his second four-year term as commissioner, while being challenged by political newcomer Steve Miller.

Iron County Commissioner Paul Cozzens speaks during debate hosted at Southern Utah University’s Hunter Conference Center, Cedar City, Utah, June 13, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

During his opening remarks, Miller said he was running on integrity, trust, transparency, and small-town values. 

“And right now … that integrity and the trust and transparency, it seems like as a county, we’re doing the bare minimum,” Miller said. “That needs to be stepped up.”

“With trust and transparency, we need to make sure that people know what’s going on. The general public needs to know what we’re doing as a commission. And with integrity, we as a commission, we need to listen to the general public, let you have a seat at the table and hear what you have to say.”

Cozzens, who started a cabinetmaking business in Cedar City 35 years ago, said he decided 10 years ago to get involved in public service.

“I realized then how important it is to have more businesspeople involved in government and less politicians,” he said. “I think every politician ought to have to build a business and learn what it’s like to sacrifice and do that, and how important tax dollars are.”

Cozzens listed his four main areas of focus as being, “Protect the taxpayer, protect our quality of life, prevent government overreach and provide infrastructure, especially water, to our citizens.”

Among the questions the candidates were asked was one that asked their opinion of the most recently proposed location for the new Iron County Jail, in the northeast section of town just north of the Fiddlers Canyon area.

“I spent a lot of time in the jail, talking to jailers, the sheriffs and the deputies,” Miller said. “I spent many hours with them, and I can tell you what, we need to find the right place and we need to continue looking for the right place. I don’t think it’s the right place right now.”

Iron County Commission candidate Steve Miller speaks during debate hosted at Southern Utah University’s Hunter Conference Center, Cedar City, Utah, June 13, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

That marked a shift in Miller’s stance over the past month. During a podcast interview on May 18, Miller had said he wouldn’t be opposed to the new jail being located at either the Smead site, which is also near where he lives, or at the Fiddlers site.

“You know, I’m not opposed at all for it going out by my home and Smead,” said Miller, noting that he’d changed his mind after initially being angry about that proposed location.

Miller had also said during last month’s podcast that he’d be fine with the Fiddlers site as well. 

“I’m not opposed to either one,” he had said. “But I think right now, there’s a situation with the people out in Fiddlers that needs to be addressed and handled correctly. And I don’t think that has been, yet.”

Meanwhile, Cozzens on Monday said he still supports building the new jail at the Fiddlers site, but noted, “It doesn’t matter where we put it, there’s going to be opposition.”

“We’re actually looking at 15 acres there,” Cozzens said of the Fiddlers site. “It may work, it may not. It’s ultimately up to the Cedar City Council to approve the zone change and a conditional use permit. If that doesn’t work, we’ll regroup and look at other options.”

“It’s an emotional topic,” added Cozzens, who himself also was in favor of the Smead site at one time, before the Fiddlers site became available.

We’ve had a jail on Main Street for 35 years,” Cozzens added.  “Our jail is old and it’s falling apart and it has to go somewhere.”

Cozzens and Miller also tackled several other topics during their debate session, including water issues, affordable housing, traffic congestion, growth, mental health services and being responsive to the smaller towns and communities within the county.

During his closing statement, Miller said that although this is his first foray into the political arena, “I’m glad to be doing it. I’m doing it for the right reasons. I’m taking a stance, I want some change. It’s time for a change.”

“Give me that opportunity,” he added. “I’ll prove myself. Integrity and trust, transparency and small-town values. That’s what I stand for. I want to help the farmers. I want to help the ranchers. I want to help the community and I want to serve the community.”

During his closing remarks, Cozzens spoke of the opportunities that he and his family have had since he first moved to Cedar City 42 years ago.

“I love Iron County,” he said. “It’s given me a place to realize the American dream.”

“It’s just been a wonderful thing to be able to realize these dreams,” he added. “I want to build a future for our kids and grandkids. I am working hard with water and other infrastructure to make sure they have the needs they have. I don’t want to export my kids and grandkids out of Iron County. I want them to live here with me so we’ll solve this problem.”

Iron County Commission Seat A

The race for Iron County Commissioner Seat A features incumbent Mike Bleak and challenger Destry Griffiths, both of whom have backgrounds in law enforcement. Griffiths was unable to appear at the debate in person but participated electronically via voice call.

Iron County Commissioner Mike Bleak speaks during debate hosted at Southern Utah University’s Hunter Conference Center, Cedar City, Utah, June 13, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

During his opening remarks, Griffiths said, “As a lifelong Republican, I’m committed to the Republican platform and applying the proper role of government. I’m committed to protecting traditional family values, maintaining property rights and reaffirmation of states’ rights and the cultural struggle to maintain this middle class and the American way.”

Bleak, a lifelong Iron County resident who first joined the County Commission during a midterm election, seeks reelection to a second full term.

Bleak said that he is “really grateful for the opportunity to continue and make Iron County such a great place to live.” He went on to say that his campaign emphasized family, relationships and integrity.

After first answering questions about tourism and water, the pair finished by talking about growth.

“St. George was not ready for a lot of the growth that they’ve received,” Griffiths said during his response. “And so it is concerning. We do need to continue to work on the general plan. I know that in Enoch, when I was on the council, we had a general plan that we continued to work on.”

“I know that the county has that already in play,” he added. “We need to utilize it. We need to utilize these people that have the experience … we need to continue to work and look for the future.”

Bleak talked about how county officials have been and are responding to growth.

“Are we ready for it?” he asked. “No. But we have the right people in place to get ready for it.”

“We have some great people in our planning and zoning department, our building department, our roads department,” Bleak added. “Every time we address, say, a zone change or …  just approving a new subdivision, foremost in our mind is, can we handle the water? Can we handle the drainage for when we get the water from the sky? Can we handle the infrastructure, whether that’s sewage or whatever that is?”

“Everything we do now, we’re looking to make sure that it’s (sustainable) in the future. That it’s not just for today, but 30 years down the road or more.”

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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