This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
All of Salt Lake City's legislators are Democrats.
And Republican Bryce Jolley believes that hurts the capital.
The argument goes something like this: Because the GOP has a lock on the Legislature, Democrats are irrelevant. Having a Salt Lake City Republican in the room when the door is closed will protect city residents' interests.
It's a belief even some Democrats may share. But Jolley has turned it into a campaign slogan of sorts, using reverse psychology as he runs against Democratic state Rep. Ross Romero for the Senate District 7 seat representing Salt Lake City's east bench neighborhoods and parts of Holladay.
"I support a balanced, two-party system," says Jolley. "But in Utah we know the Republican Party caucus really controls what's going on. And if you're not in the room, you don't have a voice."
Romero counters that just because the GOP has a lock on the Legislature doesn't mean Salt Lake City voters should give in and give up. He notes Bountiful Republican Rep. Ann Hardy represents part of Salt Lake City.
Romero says there's a distinction between Republican lawmakers' animus for Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson and Democrats in general. Besides, he says, Democrats provide a balance - however limited - in the Legislature.
"It's unfortunate to say decisions are made in closed caucuses, and if you're not there, you aren't a part of the process," Romero says. "Democrats bring balance and a contrary voice. If no one is questioning, I can't believe you're getting good legislation. The best ideas, regardless of party affiliation, will carry the day."
Utah Democrats are a super minority in the Legislature, holding 27 of 104 seats. They have to band together with moderate Republicans to hold up or change legislation. Former Sen. James Evans is the last Salt Lake City Republican to sit in the Legislature, and he left office two years ago.
Jolley isn't the only Republican candidate this fall using partisan logic to try to change Salt Lake City voters' liberal bent. House candidate Thomas Wright has sent out literature with similar language in his race against Democratic Rep. Roz McGee.
Taking a partisan turn is an unlikely tactic for Jolley, who gained his political experience on the officially nonpartisan Salt Lake City Council. Born and raised in the city, Jolley studied business and then journalism at the University of Utah. After trying his hand at insurance, real estate and computer sales, Jolley found his avocation in the family business - a chain of drug store/pharmacies, video stores and a candy company.
In 1995, he organized a neighborhood council, West of Lower Foothill, before running for City Council. Elected to one term, he weathered former Mayor Deedee Corradini's Giftgate scandal and the resulting ethics investigation.
But he is best known for his efforts to remove the words "sexual orientation" from a fledgling anti-discrimination law. At Jolley's initiative, that ordinance and its list of protected classes was replaced with more generic language. Years later, Mayor Anderson signed his own executive order, including the words "sexual orientation."
Now, Jolley wants to focus on protecting public-education funding while still exploring charter schools and tuition tax credits. He has worked on the Smart Small Schools committee advocating splitting East High School into four academies. Jolley also supports setting aside funding for transportation, reforming the state's tax structure and prodding his potential colleagues to adopt a preferred drug list.
"It's a much better way of getting drugs to people, rather than mandated programs," says the pharmacy owner.
The son of a school teacher, Romero is more leery than Jolley of charter schools and tuition tax credits - anything that would undermine public education funding. While he grew up on Salt Lake City's west side, Romero went to school in Senate District 7's neighborhood schools - the schools where his mother taught. He studied at the University of Utah before getting a law degree from the University of Michigan.
Romero wants to protect the environment, encourage energy independence and promote healthcare reform.
President of the Utah Hispanic Bar and a board member of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, he considers himself an ambassador for the state. He opposed replacing immigrants' driver licenses with driving-privilege cards and vows to fight to continue to allow undocumented students to attend Utah colleges and pay in-state tuition.
"We're talking about growing our economy," Romero says. "It is better for our community to have educated people. They're better citizens, better parents."
Romero is endorsed by retiring Sen. Karen Hale. Jolley is backed by former Sen. Dave Buhler, a current Salt Lake City councilman and the last Republican to hold the Senate seat.
As expected, Hale disputes Jolley's representation of how partisan politics work at the Legislature. She says Jolley's arguments create the impression that legislative Democrats aren't representing their districts.
Also, she discounts the inherent urban-rural split among lawmakers as a cause for Salt Lake City's sometime-struggle for funding on Capitol Hill. She notes he accepts the Republican's policy of closing their meetings. Finally, Hale adds, if everyone subscribed to Jolley's theory, no Democrats would be elected.
"If everybody used that logic, we would have a one-party system," Hale says. "I would hope that nobody in the state would want that. That's a disservice to everybody."
But Evans, now Salt Lake County Republican Party chairman, argues Salt Lake City's representation in the Legislature is "monolithic." The city, he says, needs more Republican representation.
"Just like the Democrats have argued that there needs to be more political balance across the state, that argument applies equally to Salt Lake City," Evans says. "Asking residents to sacrifice their self-interest because of a party's political ambition is unfair."