Preliminary election results from Grand County show the power of a vote in a small community, where every ballot can make a difference in races.
Tallies are drawn from the State Election website. Since a majority of Utah voters choose to vote by mail, all votes are not counted on election night. Mailed ballots that are postmarked on time and provisional ballots may not be included in the election night results, but are counted and added to totals. Final results will be released this month.
Commission At-Large: Bill Winfield
Bill Winfield looks poised to win the contest for at-large county commission seat. Winfield took just below 52% of the vote, drawing 2292 votes to Emily Campbell’s 2136.
Winfield deferred comment until election results were confirmed. Campbell took to Facebook to thank supporters and comment: “I personally felt the pain of the division in our community and can say with certainty that no one is served by it. As far as going forward, my opponent made many promises during the campaign. I congratulate him and for the sake of our County I hope he is successful in keeping them.”
Commission, District 4: Mary McGann
Mary McGann fought off challenger Lori McFarland for her District 4 commission seat by just 45 votes (500 McGann to 455 McFarland).
Commission, District 5: Mike McCurdy
In District 5, Mike McCurdy will take the commission seat after garnering 577 votes to Steve Getz with 391.
Grand County Sheriff: Jamison Wiggins
Jamison Wiggins will be the next Grand County Sheriff, after the departure of current sheriff Steve White. Wiggins took 2383 votes to Curt Brewer’s 1970. Wiggins struck a conciliatory note in his comments, thanking supporters and taking time to express his appreciation for his opponent. “Curt has been in my life for a long time and I have always looked up to him and I have nothing but love towards him,” wrote Wiggins. “I am super excited to get to work and am honored to lead this new generation of policing in Grand County.”
County Attorney: Stephen Stocks
In an upset, challenger Stephen Stocks will become Grand County Attorney, unseating incumbent Christina Sloan by 645 votes (2535 votes to Sloan’s 1890). Sloan and Stocks both ran for county attorney in 2018, when Sloan took the majority of the vote.
During her tenure, Sloan’s involvement in regional hot button issues drew both the respect of some and the ire of others, including UTV advocates. A recent story from KUTV News raised questions of possible impropriety in a real estate deal Sloan made with a man her office was involved in prosecuting—a charge Sloan characterized as defamatory, as she had no involvement in the man’s criminal case.
In a Facebook post, Stocks said he looks forward to “making the best out of this amazing opportunity,” while Sloan thanked her supporters and commented that “if I don’t have the community solidly behind me, I am super happy to move on.”
Moab Valley Fire District: Charlie Harrison
Charlie Harrison fended off a challenge for his Moab Valley Fire District seat from Sam Van Wetter, taking over 70% of the vote.
Grand County Clerk & Grand County School Board
Grand County Clerk Gabriel Woytek and Grand County School Board candidates Katherine Williams and DeeRay Wardle all ran unopposed.
Regional Results
In the newly redistricted District 69, former San Juan commissioner Phil Lyman kept his seat in the Utah House of Representatives, coming out ahead of Democrat challenger Davina Smith.
Republican challengers ended the first Native-majority county commission in Utah, with both Democrat San Juan County commissioners, Willie Greyeyes and Ken Maryboy, losing their seats. Sylvia Stubbs and Jamie Harvey will take seats on the commission, after Greyeyes and Maryboy were accused of violations of the Open Meetings Act weeks before the election.
Political parties comment
Although the majority of local candidates run as formally unaffiliated with a political party, most are endorsed by one of the major parties.
Grand County Democratic Party Chair Bob Greenberg expressed dismay with incomplete financial disclosures by candidates endorsed by the Grand County Republican Party. “It’s troubling that they claim their candidates are in favor of more transparency in local government while at the same time failing to comply with Utah laws requiring reporting the sources of their funds,” Greenberg commented.
The Grand County Republican Party issued a statement on Facebook, thanking all the candidates who ran for office.
“We think the results showed that perhaps Grand County citizens are interested in a bit more diversity on our County legislative body, so all citizens can feel like they have a voice,” the statement reads. “We wish the newly elected officials good luck and look forward to seeing if they will be able to put their campaign visions to work!”
See preliminary results at electionresults.utah.gov/elections/county/grand.
