Supporters of maverick politician Lyndon LaRouche demonstrated outside of the Utah Democratic Party headquarters Thursday, upset over state party leaders' refusal to allow LaRouche's name to be on an upcoming "straw poll" ballot for president.
In the early 1990s, LaRouche served a five-year prison term on a federal mail fraud conviction. And he has since been roundly criticized by Democratic Party leaders around the country for running — at various times — as a Democrat for president.
While LaRouche's politics may be offensive to party leaders, state party Chairman Donald Dunn said he is actually being excluded because he isn't a registered voter today or in 2000 anywhere in the United States.
"Being a registered voter now and in 2000 is one of the (candidate) requirements in the Utah Democratic Party bylaws and for the Democratic National Committee," Dunn said.
The other requirements are to qualify for president as outlined in the U.S. Constitution, promise not to run for president in any other party and to gather 4,500 signatures throughout the state or pay a $2,500 filing fee.
Not surprising, says Dunn, all the other Democratic presidential candidates have paid the filing fee rather than gather signatures. Seven of the main nine candidates — all but Al Sharpton and former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun — had paid the fee as of late Thursday.
There is almost no chance that LaRouche would actually win the national Democratic Party's presidential nomination, and so he would not appear on the final Utah general election ballot in November.
But state election executive director Amy Naccarato points out that if LaRouche supporters were to gather 1,000 signatures of registered voters, LaRouche's name could appear on the November ballot as an independent.
"There is no (Utah) filing fee for presidential candidates," said Naccarato, only the signature requirement.
The state is not involved in the Utah Democratic Party's Feb. 24 primary.
In 2000, then-Gov. Mike Leavitt persuaded lawmakers to put up $600,000 to pay for a state-sponsored presidential primary. But facing severe budget constraints a year ago, the GOP-controlled Legislature refused to fund a presidential primary this year — especially after it was clear President Bush would be the Republican nominee.
So, as they did in 1992, Democratic Party leaders decided to go it alone. The party will spend between $25,000 and $50,000 to open polling places in local high schools, with any registered voter allowed to participate.
Dunn adds he hopes at least a few of the main Democratic candidates will visit Utah before the primary, seeking support and getting to know Utah Democrats' concerns about how the federal government is being run.
LaRouche supporter Christopher Staser said LaRouche is well known in Utah and has considerable support here. LaRouche has raised enough money to qualify for $800,000 in federal matching funds in the first round of campaigning and is already on the ballot in 16 states. LaRouche should be allowed into the Democratic Party's primary here, as well, he added. This is not the first time Utah Democratic leaders have acted against LaRouche. In the 1994 state convention, two party officers were actually nominated to run for Utah legislative seats, their names put in at the last minute to prevent two LaRouche followers from automatically winning the party nominations because they were unopposed. The two party leaders later withdrew from the races, saying it was better to have no Democratic candidates in the races rather than give the LaRouche candidates an official Democratic platform for their views.
E-mail: bbjr@desnews.com