Like a giant redwood tree tumbling to the forest floor, the last Democrat standing in Tooele County fell over on election day.
It is now official. Republican Paul Wimmer will replace retiring Tooele County Sheriff Frank Park. Park was the last Democrat to hold an elected office in the county.
The vote tally for the Nov. 4 general election was canvassed and approved by the Tooele County Commission on Tuesday.
None of the Democratic candidates in the county were able to wrestle a seat away from the Republican party, leaving local Democrats to contemplate their future in a county now dominated by Republicans.
“It’s not over,” said Gillian Johns-Young, chairperson of the Tooele County Democratic Party. “We will be back.”
The closest race was for county commission seat B in which Democrat Kendall Thomas pulled down 39 percent of the vote against Republican Myron Bateman’s 53 percent. Constitution Party candidate Jonathan Garrard received 8 percent.
This was Thomas’ second unsuccessful attempt to run for a partisan seat on the county commission. In the past he has been successful at non-partisan races for the Tooele County School Board and the Stockton Town Council.
The tag line “Democrat” behind his name in the commissioner’s race made things difficult, Thomas said.
“I had people tell me they would vote for the worst Republican before they would vote for the best Democrat,” Thomas said.
He added a Republican friend told him, “Come on over and join us and then we’ll get you elected.”
Many Tooele County voters definitely consider party before they look at the person, according to Thomas, who talked one-on-one with thousands of voters as he knocked on doors during the course of his campaign.
“I would wish the next guy running good luck,” he said. “I won’t say it can’t be done, but it is hard to get elected as a Democrat in this county.”
Johns-Young believes the local Democratic party needs to do a better job of branding.
“We need to let people know that the Democratic party is the party of the common man,” she said. “We want good responsible government, but we also represent the needs of working people.”
To win in Tooele County, local Democrats will need to differentiate themselves from the national party, according to Johns-Young.
“Our local party platform says nothing about things like abortion and gun control,” she said. “These controversial and emotional issues are not local issues.”
The Tooele County Democratic Party platform deals with issues like economic development, open government, public safety, preservation of Tooele County’s rural heritage and transportation needs, according to Johns-Young.
Despite the party’s loss on election night, the county Democratic party is growing in strength and numbers, according to Johns-Young.
“We have more people coming out to our caucus meetings, conventions and other functions,” she said. “We are growing momentum and have a lot of energy.”
They key to victory for Democrats will be to persuade the county’s large block of unaffiliated voters to take a look at Democratic candidates.
While registered Republicans outnumber registered Democrats in Tooele County 10,717 to 2,140, there are 11,835 Tooele County voters who identify themselves with no political party, according to Tooele County Clerk Marilyn Gillette.
Johns-Young isn’t planning on a long rest to recover the party’s election losses. Instead, she is ready to jump right back in the race.
“We need to get into the mode of letting people know what we, the Democrats, can do for Tooele County,” she said. “And that includes recruiting another slate of well-qualified candidates for the next election.”