Two write-in candidates for Utah governor with the last name “Lyman” withdrew their candidacies on Thursday, leaving state Rep. Phil Lyman, R-Blanding, as the only “Lyman” write-in candidate when voters fill out their mail-in ballots before Election Day.
The Utah Lieutenant Governor’s Office confirmed to the Deseret News that Richard and Carol Lyman, a son and a mother, dropped out of the gubernatorial election on Thursday around 5 p.m. after originally filing a declaration of candidacy on Sept. 3.
Their withdrawal follows a lawsuit filed on Oct. 16 that names Phillip Lyman, and his running mate, attorney Natalie Clawson, as petitioners, and Richard Lyman as the respondent.
The petition alleged Richard and Carol’s candidacy was illegitimate and constituted election interference. Phil Lyman’s lawyers argued Richard and Carol had not advertised their campaign for governor in any way and that having multiple candidates with the last name “Lyman” would result in votes being thrown out because they could not be attributed to one write-in candidate or the other.
In a statement given to the Deseret News by their lawyer, Richard and Carol Lyman said they were disappointed to withdraw.
“With deep sadness, we are withdrawing our names from the ballot as candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor of the great state of Utah. Before we even submitted our candidacy, a plan was already in motion to push us out of the race,” the statement said. “This plan culminated in a frivolous lawsuit that we simply cannot afford to fight. The claims in this lawsuit are false, and we want to make it unequivocally clear that we did nothing wrong and broke no laws. We have every right to run for Governor and Lieutenant Governor and should not have been forced out by those with deeper pockets.”
The write-in candidates said they were unable to campaign because Carol broke her leg, but that “Richard has had political aspirations since childhood. He wanted to bring attention to issues like homelessness, addiction, and mental health.”
What did Phil Lyman’s lawsuit say?
The petition resurfaced claims made by Phil Lyman in early September that he had received messages from an apparent acquaintance of Richard Lyman’s, alleging that Richard had entered the race after being promised $1,000 and offered a “steak dinner” by the campaign of Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox to register as a write-in candidate.
Richard and Carol Lyman rejected the claim at the time, saying they were running “to make a statement.” Cox’s campaign spokesperson previously called Phil Lyman’s allegations “blatantly false.”
Phil Lyman’s lawsuit claimed Richard and Carol’s decision inflicted damages of up to $1.7 million — the same amount the Lyman campaign had spent during the election cycle. Phil Lyman’s attorney requested that Richard and Carol be disqualified from the race “as if they had never declared candidacy to run as write-in candidates.”
In an order proposed by Phil Lyman’s attorney shortly after 4 p.m. on Thursday, Richard and Carol would be required to file a notice of withdrawal with the Lieutenant Governor’s Office before 5 p.m. The proposed order stated that any write-in vote for “Lyman” for Utah governor should be counted toward Phil Lyman. The lawsuit appears to still be open.
Lyman campaign responds to withdrawal of Richard and Carol Lyman
Clawson told the Deseret News on Friday that the Lyman campaign respects Richard and Carol’s decision to withdraw and hopes Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson will instruct county clerks to count all “Lyman” write-ins for Phil Lyman.
“The motives behind their initial filing continue to be unclear and we look forward to getting to the bottom of that story,” Clawson said. “Nevertheless, we believe this is a positive development that will help simplify the counting of write-in votes on November 5. ... We still encourage voters to write “Phil Lyman” on the write-in line.”
The Lieutenant Governor’s Office confirmed to the Deseret News on Friday that county clerks will count all “Lyman” write-in entries for Phil Lyman as long as they can determine voters’ intent.
Phil Lyman launched a write-in campaign for governor in August after losing to Cox in the Republican primary election by more than 37,500 votes in June.
Lyman has refused to accept the results of the primary election until he verifies the results himself. Lyman has filed multiple lawsuits arguing that his victory in the Utah Republican Party convention in April should guarantee him a place on the general election ballot. Lyman has also questioned Cox’s primary qualification through signature gathering.
The general election between Cox and Democratic candidate state Rep. Brian King will be Tuesday, Nov. 5. Utah voters should have already received their mail-in ballots. In addition to Lyman, other write-in candidates include Charlie Tautuaa and Sylvia Miera Fisk.