Biskupski garners most votes in SLC mayoral race, advances to general election


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SALT LAKE CITY — Mayor Ralph Becker has advanced to the Nov. 3 general election, but unofficial results from Tuesday's primary indicate the incumbent mayor has some work to do if he hopes to earn a third term.

Jackie Biskupski was the top vote-getter in the previously crowded race for Salt Lake City mayor and will join Becker on the ballot on Election Day.

Biskupski snagged more votes than Becker, with 46.2 percent to his 30.7 percent. Salt Lake City Council Chairman Luke Garrott received 12.9 percent, businessman Dave Robinson got 6.4 percent, and community activist George Chapman got 3.8 percent.

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Out of more than 71,000 registered voters in Salt Lake City, just under 28,000 votes were counted as of 10 p.m. Tuesday, putting voter turnout at 39.3 percent.

"This has just begun the campaign. Our whole campaign has been built around the general election," Becker told supporters who attended his primary election party Tuesday evening at his Salt Lake home.

"We are prepared starting tomorrow to regroup and move forward," he said. "There will likely be twice as many voters in the general election as there are in the primary, so we've got more voters to contact. … But nevertheless, we have a lot of work to do."

Biskupski's party cheered when early results were posted Tuesday night. She said she expected to hold the lead, but not by such a large margin.

"I'm really quite pleased," Biskupski said. "We've been working so hard, and we've also been very articulate in our message of the need for change and talking about the issues in the city that really require new, strong, collaborative leadership. I'm resonating with people, and I'm really excited because I can't wait to take on this next leg of this journey."

The results won't be final until Aug. 18, after the Salt Lake City Council conducts an official canvass. Salt Lake County Clerk Sherrie Swensen has said it's rare that preliminary and official results vary drastically, but outcomes could change in close races.


I'm really quite pleased. We've been working so hard, and we've also been very articulate in our message of the need for change and talking about the issues in the city that really require new, strong, collaborative leadership. I'm resonating with people, and I'm really excited because I can't wait to take on this next leg of this journey.

–Jackie Biskupski


While it's clear Becker and Biskupski will advance to the general election, voters won't know how many votes each candidate received until next week.

Tim Chambless, a University of Utah political science professor affiliated with the Hinckley Institute of Politics, said Tuesday's results show Biskupski "has a very fair shot."

"The mayor is in trouble," he said. "He has a lot of work to do."

Voters who were motivated enough to vote for any of Becker's rivals will likely slide their votes to Biskupski in the general election, Chambless said.

"I don't think the mayor is going to get those votes back," he said. "They're going to vote for the remaining challenger. … What he's going to have to do is expand the pie, reach out to people who didn't vote."

Chambless also noted the unanimous vote of the Legislature's Prison Relocation Commission to build the new prison in Salt Lake City could have a negative impact on Becker leading up to November's vote.

"The mayor is going to look like someone who could not stop the politicians just up the street from City Hall from making this decision," Chambless said. "Inadvertently, this is going to help his challenger."

Garrott said in a prepared statement that he's still deciding whether he will endorse one of the remaining mayoral candidates.

"With a two-person race, I hope that voters and the media will take a more critical look at Ralph's record and Jackie's plans of public transit, affordable housing, homelessness and inclusive decision-making in City Hall," Garrott said. "Voters deserve more substance and more honesty from these two than we saw in the primary."

Earlier Tuesday, Garrott took a final jab at Becker when he filed a complaint with the Salt Lake County Clerk's Office, accusing Becker's campaign staff of violating election laws by collecting voted ballots for delivery.

"We now have several reports that the Becker campaign crossed the line in receiving voted ballots at campaign events and in their canvassing operation," said Richard Jaramillo, Garrott's campaign manager. "It's a clear violation of Utah election law, raises concerns about ballot tampering, and places other campaigns at a disadvantage when we play by the rules."

But Becker's campaign spokesman, Matt Lyon, said supporters at campaign events were encouraged to drop their ballots in the mailbox, not to hand them over to Becker's campaign. He called Garrott's complaint "frivolous."

Chapman said he was disappointed in the results, but he's "100 percent determined to ensure that (Salt Lake residents) who want more police, better transit service and no tax or bond increases will be listened to."

Robinson, however, said he was pleased with the numbers. Even though he won't be advancing to the general election, Robinson said he's glad mayoral debates have given issues including homelessness and drug dealing more attention.

"Ralph Becker needs to no longer be the mayor of Salt Lake City," he said. "The election results are very promising."

It's been a heated race since the five hopefuls filed for candidacy in June.

According to Aug. 4 campaign finance reports, Becker has raised more than $500,000 for his campaign, while Biskupski has taken in $290,510. The other candidates reported substantially fewer donations, with Dave Robinson at $22,311, Luke Garrott at $21,971, and George Chapman at $11,711.

Throughout their campaigns, all four of Becker's challengers have criticized him on issues ranging from the $120 million theater under construction on Main Street, to not adequately addressing crime and homelessness.

Becker has maintained a calm and collected demeanor, even after he was caught in a swirl of political controversy when he forced the resignation of Salt Lake City's popular police chief, Chris Burbank, in the wake of a pending sexual harassment lawsuit.

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Becker fired back at Biskupski when a political action committee erected at least 15 billboards supporting her campaign. Becker accused the PAC and Biskupski of skirting Salt Lake City's $7,500 mayoral campaign contribution limit, but the PAC leaders said they funded the billboards as independent contributions, which is allowed by state law.

A few weeks later, the same billboard PAC raised billboards for all of Becker's other opponents. Salt Lake City Recorder Cindi Mansell has said it's the first time in Salt Lake City's history that PAC money had entered local elections in such magnitude. According to campaign finance reports, the PAC spent more than $113,000.

Biskupski railed against Becker on Tuesday after the Prison Relocation Commission unanimously voted to build a new state prison in Salt Lake City, accusing Becker of playing a part of the selection process.

In March, Biskupski claimed the mayor worked a "back-room deal" with legislators to couple a sales tax increase with the prison relocation.

"The culpability of Mayor Becker in this process is especially disappointing," Biskupski said in a prepared statement Tuesday night.

But Becker has denied the accusations and has consistently expressed opposition to moving the prison to Salt Lake City.

Becker, who is seeking a third term, seemed unfazed by Tuesday's early results. He said his campaign is now even more motivated to reach out to voters as the general election approaches.

"We are going to win this race starting tomorrow," Becker said. "We're going to recalibrate and re-energize. In November, it's going to be a different outcome."

Biskupski said her campaign is going to maintain its momentum.

"We are just 12 weeks out from the general election, and our work is far from over," Biskupski said. "My campaign is more energized than ever and I look forward to winning the general election in November."

Salt Lake City Council

District 4 was the only Salt Lake City Council race that required a primary, with five candidates vying for Garrott's seat, which he will be leaving after two terms.

Derek Kitchen, an LGBT activist and one of the plaintiffs in the case against Utah's same-sex marriage ban, and Nate Salazar, who serves as vice chairman of the East Central Community Council and chairman of the Salt Lake County Democratic Hispanic Caucus, will advance to the Nov. 3 general election.

Kitchen had a clear lead, with 36.2 percent of the vote Tuesday evening, and Salazar was second with 17.9 percent.

Miles Petty was close behind with 16.2 percent, followed by Babs De Lay at 15.6 percent and Jen Colby at 14 percent.

Ballots for the Nov. 3 election will be mailed out to voters Oct. 5.

Contributing: Nkoyo Iyamba

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Katie McKellar

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