By the bare margin of eight votes, Wayne Owens fell short of winning the Democratic Party's U.S. Senate nomination outright Saturday.
Owens said after a recount that he won't dispute the matter further and so will face a relieved Doug Anderson in the primary election Sept. 8.Gubernatorial candidates Pat Shea and Stewart Hanson will face each other in a primary election; as will attorney general candidates Scott Daniels and Jan Graham.
First Congressional District candidate Ron Holt won enough delegate votes to eliminate all other Democrats, as did 2nd District candidate Karen Shepherd.
Both are optimistic. "I am confident my campaign will appeal to moderate Republicans and independents," Holt said. "We have to beat (incumbent Rep.) Jim Hansen."
Shepherd would not say which Republican candidate she prefers - there are three men and two women now running - but liked the prospect of running against a woman Republican. "It would be fun. And it would certainly be unusual."
Shepherd will try to keep in Democratic hands the seat Owens is relinquishing for his latest Senate bid.
Rep. Bill Orton, D-Utah, was unopposed within the party in his 3rd Congressional District.
Before the vote of the 2,245 state delegates meeting in Cottonwood High School, Anderson predicted he'd just sneak into a primary with Owens. He couldn't have sneaked much closer.
Under state law, if a candidate gets 70 percent of the delegate vote or more in his convention, he wins his party's nomination outright and there's no primary election. According the party vote-counters, Owens got 69.67 percent of the vote - just eight votes short of 70 percent.
It may have been poetic justice. In 1974, Owens topped 70 percent against established Democrat Donald Holbrook by just three votes, recalls Democratic Party Chairman Peter Billings Jr., eliminating Holbrook and winning the U.S. Senate nomination outright. Owens lost the final election that year to Sen. Jake Garn, R-Utah.
"I didn't want a primary, because of the financial burden it
See DEMOS on B4
carries with it," an exhausted Owens said Saturday night from his home as state party officials were recounting the ballots for a second time. "But winning a primary, and I will, means you go into the general election with momentum.
"We didn't win the convention but won a huge majority and feel the momentum will carry us to the primary," he said.
Anderson, a well-to-do business consultant, already has put $1.1 million of his own money into his race. Finding the money for a well-run primary campaign won't be as much a problem for him as for Owens.
"I always said we never had to leap tall buildings in a single bound," Anderson said after hearing the final vote count. "We'll take the stairs." He promised a fair but tough primary campaign, one in which he'll be tested and come out the winner, showing he has what it takes to win the general election. "There may be some bumping," between him and Owens, Anderson said.
Two other candidates are very happy with Saturday's convention - gubernatorial candidate Shea - who is pro-life - came out ahead of Hanson - a pro-choice candidate who hoped his abortion-rights stand would help him come out first in the convention. Approaching the convention, neither Shea nor Hanson believed they could get 70 percent of the vote. Shea got 52 percent and Hanson 47 percent.
Attorney general candidate Daniels surprised many by finishing ahead of Graham. A delegate poll for television last week showed Graham well ahead of Daniels, although neither was expected to get 70 percent. Daniels got 54 percent of the vote to Graham's 46 percent.
Graham is seeking to become the first woman elected to statewide office in Utah; Daniels is seeking to become the first judge elected attorney general.
The 2,245 delegates voting in the convention made it one of the largest turnouts of Democrats in recent history.
Both Owens and Anderson gave rousing convention addresses, shouting to delegates and supporters about how they will beat Republican Joe Cannon in the fall. Cannon leads in the polls among the four main GOP candidates.
Shea always figured his pro-life stand on abortion rights stand would harm him most in his party's convention, where delegates are more liberal than the Democratic population in general. Shea's speech was well-received. But when he said: "I am not and will never be a one-issue candidate," hinting at Hanson's pro-choice stand, one woman in the crowd shouted out at him, "You're not a woman."
Hanson's greatest cheers - some of the loudest of the day - came in his convention address when he said he has the courage to protect the right of a woman to make a choice about abortion. "The government must not take away a woman's right to choose," he told a chorus of cheering delegates, many of them women.
Shea's lieutenant-governor running mate is Bobbie Coray, economic development coordinator in Cache County. On Hanson's ticket is state Rep. Paula Julander, D-Salt Lake.
Daniels aides said his campaign came on strong the last week, meeting with many delegates after the TV poll showed Graham ahead. Graham is pregnant - in fact Saturday was her due date - but told delegates her pregnancy has not harmed her campaigning. She's named her unborn baby boy Willie. "I'll deliver Willie, and then I'll delivery the attorney general's office to you," she said.
Other races
State Senate candidates Cheri Hall and Steven Kesler will face off in a primary election for the newly created District 4 seat covering south Salt Lake County and north Utah County. Each candidate received 16 delegate votes.
And incumbent Rep. John Garr, D-Price, will face Tom Matthews in a primary election for House District 69. Garr was appointed to the House seat during the past session of the Legislature, but trailed Matthews in delegate votes 24-34.
State treasurer candidate Art Monson eliminated fellow Democrat A. Gary Bowen.
Elected as the national committeeman was J.D. Williams; elected as National Committeewoman was Louise Henson.
*****
(Chart)
The results of the vote
Candidates in bold win state convention nomination. If two candidates win nomination, they will face each other in the primary election Sept. 8. A candidate winning 70 percent of the convention vote wins the party's nomination and moves directly to the general election.
U.S. Senate
Wayne Owens 1,564 69.7%
Doug Anderson 645 28.7%
Kyle Kopitke 36 1.6%
Governor
Pat Shea 1,161 52%
Stewart Hanson 1,061 47%
Byron Marchant 24 1%
1st Congressional District
Ron Holt 591 81%
Jerry Crouch 100 14%
Craig Russell 35 5%
2nd Congressional District
Karen Shepherd 788 84%
William Robbins 112 13%
Charles Saulsberry 23 3%
3rd Congressional District
Bill Orton (unopposed, nominated by acclamation)
Attorney general
Scott Daniels 1,199 54%
Jan Graham 1,038 46%