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Richard Piatt ReportingThe 2006 political season just got its jump start in Utah neighborhoods. Tonight delegates were selected who will help pick candidates the rest of us will vote for this fall.
This is democracy at its most simple and user-friendly. Delegates get a crack at electing candidates before anyone else; it's an honor not many people even know about.
Don't let the stately setting, crystal chandeliers, even the presence of the Governor and First Lady fool you. This is a meeting any Republican from this Avenues precinct could attend. It's no different than one held in a school auditorium, where several Democratic precincts met. For both parties, these people care what happens in Utah politics.
At the grassroots level, citizens gather at neighborhood caucus meetings like tonight's. They elect county and state party delegates. In April there are county conventions, and in May, state conventions. That's where those delegates select who will be on the ballots for the primary elections.
So the candidates are determined before voters go to the polls in the Primary election. Of course, candidates who survive the primaries move on to the General Elections.
Now, each of those delegates will be getting phone calls, free lunch offers and gifts, all from candidates who are hoping to appeal to them at the grass roots level.
