Thank you, Summit County!
To all the citizens of Summit County who worked and voted for my campaign of fiscally responsible, limited, and open county government, I sincerely Thank You! Your best wishes and support are truly inspiring.
Even though my efforts fell short of my being elected, I have decided to endeavor to track the voting record of our County Council. It will be more difficult w/o a seat on the Council but do look to summitcountycouncil.com in the near future to obtain an on-going tabulation of our Council's votes on subjects of importance to all of us.
2010 Election Results
This year I ran for Seat 'D' on the Summit County Council in the state of Utah. This is my third political campaign and my second for a seat on the County Council. This year the Republicans did not run a candidate, most certainly as an oversight v. intentionally. Thus the race boiled down to a Constitution Party candidate, yours truly, and the Democrat incumbent. It is important to note that even though Utah in general votes Republican, Summit County is strongly Democrat controlled.
Park Record: "Challenger attacks incumbent in County Council campaign"
The following is my further clarification of and rebuttal of some of the issues and opinions contained within the above article which was published 10/22/2010. Note that I have included the article in it's entirety below my remarks for this post.
First, let me thank Patrick Parkinson for taking the time to interview me for this article. Thank you, I think.
Second, regarding “Facing an uphill climb…”, I consider it good exercise and a challenge to those who would be ‘king of the hill’. The American tradition is based on ‘uphill climbs’ and achievement, not the status quo.
Cutting to the chase
The bottom line is that Summit County voters have two choices this year in regards to selecting an individual to represent them on the Summit County Council.
If you believe that four liberal/Progressive Democrats on the five member Council best represents you and the County,
If you believe that having five Council members that 'work together well' is of paramount importance, regardless of where they are taking the county,
Gary's Message
I welcome you to my candidate for Summit County Council, Seat 'D' web site!
You have two choices in 2010 as this year there is no registered Republican candidate in the Summit County Council Seat 'D' race. The race is between a candidate championing Democrat/Progressive ideals or myself who reveres our Constitution, champions states rights, open and smaller government, property rights, free enterprise, and bringing sanity to government's fiduciary responsibilities by being fiscally conservative.
Oakley 10/28/2010 Speech
There was a candidates forum in Oakley on Thursday evening with was well conducted and well attended. It is heartening to see people get involved in local politics, particularly the younger people. Thank you Oakley, Pat Cone, and all for putting this on.
The following is my prepared remarks from that event. I was under the impression that a strict 3-minute time frame was going to be followed so I prepared my remarks.
They are as follows:
summitcountycouncil.org, summitcountycouncil.com, and summitcountycouncil.us
I recently purchased the above domains with the intention, if elected, to place the UNOFFICIAL public voting record of the Council members where they can be accessed easily by anyone with an Internet connection.
Right now the minutes from Summit County Council meetings containing the Council votes are housed in the SIRE system. This is the official system but that system is difficult and very laborious to use. Getting a summary of the Council's votes is, for all intents and purposes, impractical, if not impossible.
Write-in Candidate Files in Summit County Council, Seat 'D' Campaign
There are now three individuals vying for Summit County Council, Seat 'D'. They are Chris Robinson, the incumbent and Democrat, myself, Gary Shumway, Constitution Party, and now a write-in candidate, Mr. Tyler Rowser. Write-in candidates have no specified party though it appears Tyler filed earlier on the Democrat ticket for Treasurer.
Being a write-in candidate is tough and Tyler got a bit of a late start, so I will continue to focus on Chris as my primary competition, though Tyler is also a legitimate candidate.
Chris is not an elephant in a donkey suit
I do not have any proof of my suspicion but I suspect that for a number of reasons, during the 2008 elections, some thought that Chris was really an elephant masquerading in a donkey suit. Why? In order to get elected. With four Democrats on the Council and Ure in a relatively tight race with Steve, a political unknown, I think the case can be made that in Summit County it is easier to get elected if one runs on the Democrat ticket.
Why would some think Chris an elephant?
Deficit by Gary Shumway
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Chris claims 'hearty debate' in Summit County Council deliberation
I am not sure where Chris got all the email addresses of Summit County residents but he is apparently sending out the following form email to his entire list since not just Democrats are receiving it. The email reads:
Dear {a Summit County Resident},
I have been honored to represent you on the Summit County Council for the last two years.
I would appreciate your vote for an additional four year term to assure that our fledging council/manager form of government succeeds.
Chris Robinson says "Poppy Cock" to ABC4 News article stating FBI investigating Summit County
On a local radio show this morning (Thr, 10/7/2010), Robinson denied the story by ABC4 News reporter, Chris Vanocur, regarding the assertion that the FBI is looking into 'wrongdoing' in Summit County government. Of course that begs the question, "Why would the FBI inform Robinson whether they were investigating Summit County or not when they would not tell Vanocur?" Oh, and would it not seem reasonable to assert that those being investigated would not likely be the first to know or if they were "interviewed" would they not be told to keep their mouths shut?
FBI Investigating Summit County Land Deals
In addition to the county having a $1.6 million deficit, a $2 million cost overrun on the public health building, and a full scale legislative audit being conducted by the state of Utah, we now learn that the FBI is conducting an investigation into land deals involving Summit County.
