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State Central Committee hopefuls press to preserve caucus system and restrict signature tactics
Summary
A slate of Davis County candidates for the Utah Republican State Central Committee urged protecting the caucus-and-convention process, limiting last-minute registration and pushing bylaws to restrict candidates who use signature-gathering instead of the convention path.
A forum of State Central Committee (SCC) candidates at a Davis County Conservatives meeting focused on preserving the party's caucus-and-convention nominating system, combating the effects of Senate Bill 54 (which allows signature access to primary ballots) and improving outreach and education for delegates.
Several candidates said the caucus-convention system is the best way to produce informed nominees and to give local party activists a meaningful voice. Jennifer Garner, a candidate and former SCC member, said, "There's unfinished business that I'm ready to get to," and presented her candidacy as a continuation of previous SCC work. Other candidates who spoke — including Olivia Dawn, Peter Cannon, Winston Barlow, Jason Hackett and others — emphasized voter education, precinct-level outreach and stricter party bylaws to prevent external money and signature-gathering campaigns from undermining convention outcomes.
During a brief yes-or-no round, meeting organizers asked candidates whether they would reinstate a previously proposed bylaw (identified in the discussion as "bylaw 8") that would withdraw party membership from people who gather signatures to place candidates on the primary ballot. Multiple candidates indicated support for reinstating the bylaw; one participant said the question would be a straightforward "yes" in this forum.
Candidates highlighted several perceived threats to the party's internal processes: out-of-state money, signature-driven campaigns that bypass local conventions, low attendance at SCC meetings and a lack of coordinated education about caucus procedures. Several candidates urged more in-person SCC participation and proposed reducing virtual attendance and Zoom reliance; panelists said remote attendance had hampered productive debate and made it easier for leadership rulings to go unchallenged.
No formal SCC nomination or vote was taken at the meeting. Candidates encouraged delegates to attend the county organizing convention and the pre-convention candidate vetting sessions that county organizers scheduled at local libraries.
