Summit County Republican leaders say a text message circulating on social media that appears to endorse Park City mayoral candidate Jack Rubin and Jeremy Rubell for city council didn’t come from the party.
The text entitled “GOP Voting Alert” was sent Monday afternoon, the day before the Nov. 4 election.
After speaking with candidates and leaders on the other side of the aisle, Summit County GOP Chair Ari Ioannides told KPCW he doesn’t believe it came from the local Democratic party either, or any Park City candidate or a candidate’s campaign.
Ioannides said he would refer the message to the proper authorities for investigation, as local Democratic Chair Rory Swensen suggested.
Both leaders believe it’s an illegal form of electioneering, if the source of the text impersonated the local GOP. Swensen told KPCW the party is looking into how to properly report the text message.
“We believe this message may have been sent by bad actors attempting to mislead voters and manipulate the election by creating the false appearance of Republican involvement,” Ioannides said.
The text went to Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated voters within Park City limits, and it’s unclear how they were targeted. The private voter data parties and candidates can access from the Summit County Clerk’s Office doesn’t include phone numbers.
“Voters deserve transparency, honesty and confidence that everyone is playing by the same rules and upholding election integrity,” Swensen said in a statement.
The state-level Utah Democratic Party endorsed Rubin and Rubell’s opponents, Ryan Dickey, Tana Toly and Diego Zegarra, in a text blast the week prior. Swensen says he allowed state Democrats to use his name in the text but clarified it did not come from the local county party.
After that mass text, the GOP told its members to support Jack Rubin for Park City mayor and Jeremy Rubell for Park City Council in an e-newsletter Nov. 1. However, Ioannides told KPCW that’s not an endorsement.
Earlier in the campaign, the Summit County GOP endorsed Jeremie Forman for Francis mayor, Kay Richins for Henefer mayor and Lynn Wood, who is running against Swensen for Coalville mayor.
Municipal elections in Utah are nominally nonpartisan, but as KUER reports, partisan endorsements do happen, and are legal.
