SALT LAKE CITY–Scott Simpson, president of the Utah Credit Union Association, is considering a run for Congress representing this state’s 1st District.
Simpson has not yet decided whether to run, but told UtahPolicy.com he believes any announcement would have to come ahead of 2019’s holiday season.
Simpson has lead the Utah CU Association for the past 16 years, but prior to that, from 1998-2002, Simpson was executive director of the Utah Republican Party. Simpson had been hired for the job by then URP Chairman Bob Bishop, who currently represents the 1st District in Congress and who has announced he will retire at year-end, UtahPolicy.com reported.
According to the publication, Simpson is among several people considering making a run at the seat.
In an interview with UtahPolicy.com, Simpson said for any serious would-be candidate, groundwork should have already started, including putting together campaign teams and setting up a strategy. But the process of doing those things and running for office has gotten more “strident,” according to Simpson.
Changed Playing Field
Simpson told UtahPolicy.com the last two election cycles of SB54, with the dual-route to the primary by gathering signatures and/or going to the traditional delegate convention, have greatly changed the playing field, says Simpson.
“I’m a fan of the beauty, of the old caucus/delegate/convention system,” Simpson was quoted as saying, before adding the political reality today is that the convention process alone has almost become a “poisonous vessel,” where just about anything can happen in a convention even if a diligent candidate has planned it out well.
Simpson told UtahPolicy.com any candidate who is serious about his goals, his desire to win and serve the public, is obligated to take the signature route, and perhaps the convention route, too.
Simpson said if there is no wealthy GOP candidate in the 1st District next year – “who can just write a check” to fund his primary campaign, then the primary race should cost around $250,000.
“The 1st District is heavily Republican, and money should be no real problem after the GOP nominee is picked – almost certainly in the primary as more than two candidates will gather the 7,000 voter signatures to make the ballot, on top of one or two coming out of the delegate convention,” UtahPolicy.com reported.
Concerns Over Bank/CU Tensions
Simpson told the publication he does have one political concern–should he get in the race, insider political animosity left over from the bitter credit union/bank fights in the Utah Legislature of the late 1990s and early 2000s might still linger.
While that was a long time ago, “… a whole lot of money and a whole lot of political capital was spent in those fights – with a few legislators losing their seats (and winning them back later) over the bank/credit union bare-knuckle political brawls,” UtahPolicy.com said.