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Local organizers urge delegates to defend caucus system, debate party leadership and SB 54
Summary
At the forum, Davis County Conservatives leaders urged members to attend the county organizing convention and to oppose signature-gathering rules (SB 54), described by speakers as a threat to the caucus/precinct delegate system; speakers also described past party bylaw fights and signaled interest in state party leadership contests.
Davis County Conservatives chair Tina Horlacher and former San Juan County commissioner and gubernatorial candidate Phil Lyman used a county forum to press attendees to participate in the Republican precinct and county convention process and to oppose the signature-gathering approach embodied in SB 54.
Why it matters: The forum speakers framed the April 12 county organizing convention and internal party bylaws as decisive for whether local Republicans rely on the precinct-delegate system or allow candidates to reach the primary ballot through paid signature gathering. Speakers argued the choice affects party autonomy and who controls nominations.
Horlacher opened the forum with procedural requests and asked attendees to sign up as delegates and to support the county party. She told the room, "We need to donate to the party because we need to run our own elections... it is very important that you go to this convention and that you find the right people to elect."
Lyman and others recounted a multi-year internal party struggle over a bylaw (referred to at the forum as "bylaw 8") intended to penalize candidates who use paid signature gathering so they would not carry the party's label; speakers said that rule was passed at one point and later repealed amid leadership changes. Lyman described efforts by successive state party leaders and the state central committee (SEC) to block or reverse those changes, saying those internal fights show the stakes of leadership elections.
Lyman said he and allied activists believe a strong party organization and precinct-level engagement could blunt outside spending in signature drives and preserve the caucus/delegate method. At the forum he said he and others are preparing for possible state-party leadership bids: "We are running for the state chair... I don't want to be the chair of the GOP, but it feels like that has to happen if you're sincere with your family."
Speakers described concrete steps for listeners: attend the county organizing convention on April 12, consider running for precinct positions, and support party fundraising. The forum also included references to earlier votes and internal party actions; speakers said those governance choices interact with state law (SB 54) and with litigation over signatures.
What the forum did not do: The event was advocacy for a particular organizational approach within the GOP; it did not present formal party decisions taken at the meeting itself. Attendees were urged to take action at upcoming formal meetings.
Ending: Organizers asked participants to recruit delegates and volunteer for county-level party work; they framed the coming weeks as pivotal for who will control candidate selection and party rules in Davis County.
