SALT LAKE CITY — Democratic candidate for governor Peter Corroon seriously considered at least three Republicans as his running mate.
Corroon, the Salt Lake County mayor, is scheduled to decide on a lieutenant governor candidate this weekend and announce his pick Monday.
The shortlist he's choosing from is being tightly guarded by the campaign, but the Deseret News has learned the names of four contenders for the No. 2 spot — a list that includes three Republicans.
"Party doesn't matter," said Corroon's campaign manager, Donald Dunn. However, he noted, a Republican could help woo the moderate GOP and independent voters a Democrat needs to win statewide office.
Corroon isn't necessarily looking for a running mate already involved in politics, Dunn said, but "somebody who brings some expertise to the table in one of the areas that are key focuses for him: the economy, education and quality of life."
Dunn declined to discuss any candidates for the lieutenant governor spot on the ticket. "The offer hasn't been made, so there's nobody to tell you," he said Friday. Corroon's announcement is scheduled to be held at an elementary school.
Senate Minority Leader Pat Jones of Holladay is the only Democrat on the list of possible running mates obtained by the News. Jones, though, said she is committed to running for reelection. Jones is president of Dan Jones & Associates, which conducts polls for Corroon's opponent, GOP Gov. Gary Herbert.
"I think Peter Corroon is a great candidate. I'm honored my name would be in the mix. That's very flattering," Jones said. "But I enjoy what I'm doing."
Corroon also looked at Rep. Sheryl Allen, a moderate Republican from Bountiful who chose to retire from the Legislature rather than face a slate of conservative challengers this year from within her party.
Allen upset many Republicans in the Legislature by becoming involved behind the scenes in bringing ethics charges against Rep. Greg Hughes, R-Draper, in 2008. Hughes was found innocent of the charges but reprimanded by the House Ethics Committee.
Allen said a Republican would be an asset to the Democratic ticket. "I look at how very partisan we are. It really is getting more intense," she said. "It's time, I think, for everyone to put state and country first and not party."
Other Republicans looked at by the Corroon campaign include Lynn M. Hansen, an arms negotiator under two GOP presidents; and Ned C. Hill, former dean of the Brigham Young University Marriott School of Business.
Hansen said he was contacted by the campaign after a guest commentary he wrote praising President Barack Obama and other Democratic leaders for the new federal health-care plan appeared in The Standard Examiner in late March.
"I wasn't that enthusiastic. For me, it was sort of a call to serve," said Hansen, who is changing his political registration from Republican to unaffiliated. "If it had turned out they really wanted me, I would have done it."
At 74, Hansen said he felt he was too old for the job but was told by campaign leaders he was on their lieutenant governor shortlist. But when he asked recently whether he needed to reschedule an overseas trip set for next week, Hansen said he was told not to change his plans.
Hill did not return telephone calls for comment but is believed to be among the three or so candidates still on the shortlist because of his economic expertise.
A Republican, he withdrew as a candidate for Utah Valley University president last year after being told he would have to "make nice" with Utah County lawmakers upset that his wife, Claralyn Hill, ran for the Legislature as a Democrat.
At the time, Ned Hill said he found it "inappropriate that my politics had to be correct if I wanted to be president of the university."
He had also been involved in a controversial effort to organize support among BYU alumni for Republican Mitt Romney's presidential aspirations. While dean, he and an associate sent out an e-mail on a university computer.
Herbert selected his running mate, Lt. Gov. Greg Bell, a former GOP state senator, last year. Herbert assumed the office in August after former Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. stepped down to become U.S. ambassador to China. A special election is set for November for the remaining two years of Huntsman's second term.
e-mail: lisa@desnews.com