Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Richard Piatt reporting News of the possible felony charges against the County Mayor has eroded her public support in this election year.
There's no question: County Mayor Nancy Workman has an image problem right now. It's something that could benefit her political opponents--and something she vows to overcome.
Nancy Workman, Mayor of Salt Lake County: "I'm running. We're not going to back off., we're not going to let this put me down..."
Mayor Workman is defiant; insisting she's done nothing wrong. Dan Jones and Associates interviewed 408 Salt Lake County Residents for KSL TV and the Deseret Morning News. According to the exclusive Dan Jones poll, support for the county mayor in the general public has dropped.
Mayor Workman The Candidate
- Keep Running 43%
- Step Aside 44%
- Other/Don't Know 13% +/-5% There is a split reaction to whether Nancy Workman should continue her campaign for re-election. Of 408 Salt Lake County residents interviewed Wednesday afternoon, 43 per cent say she should. 44 per cent say she should not.
- Should Resign 26%
- Should Resign Only If Guilty 65 %
- Other/don't Know 9% +/- 5% Those residents won't go as far as saying Workman should quit. Only 26 per cent say--based on what they know right now, she should resign. 65 per cent say she should only resign if she is found guilty. Most telling of waning support for Workman are head-to head results that compare the candidates. Those candidates stand to benefit from Workman's legal trouble. But Democrat Peter Corroon was careful about appearing happy about it. Peter Corroon/(D) Candidate For Salt Lake County Mayor: "Our focus is on what our message is and what our campaign is about and not focus on mayor workman, her problems and criminal indictments." Independent candidate Merrill Cook was a little more open about the situation; he stands to gain Republican support. Merrill Cook/ Candidate for County Mayor: "I think it's almost like a pole vault for us because the undecided voters right now are mostly republican, mostly independent. I think they're gonna come aboard my campaign because I think they think I have a better chance to win this." Favorite Candidate
- Nancy Workman (R) 23%
- Peter Corroon (D) 37%
- Merrill Cook (I) 10%
- Other 5%
- Did not know 25% +/- 5% In fact, if the election were today, the poll finds Corroon with the most support: 37 per cent to Workman's 23 per cent. Cook stands at 10 per cent right now. 25 per cent say they're undecided. Workman got lots of political advice today, behind closed doors. But she's handling this situation her way, for better or worse.
