Skip to main content

Davis Journal

Handy to run for legislative seat as write-in candidate

Sep 02, 2022 11:52AM ● By Tom Haraldsen

LAYTON—It took Utah State Rep. Steve Handy (R-Layton) a few months of “strategizing and agonizing” before he made a decision, but on Tuesday, the longtime public servant filed papers with the Davis County Clerk to begin an effort to retain his seat in the Utah State Legislature. He kicked off his write-in campaign Tuesday night at a rally with about 80 friends and supporters in Layton Commons Park.

“Voters of House District 16 deserve a say in who will be their voice at the State Capitol,” he said in a statement before the rally. “We feel strongly that our views and values align with the community. I am confident voters will respond positively to my record.”

At the Davis County Republican Convention on March 28, Handy was defeated by challenger Trevor Lee, a political newcomer who got 59 of the 92 delegate votes. Handy did not gather signatures to assure his name would appear on the ballot for the Republican primary election.

“I came up about three delegates short of getting into a primary,” he said in an interview with the Davis Journal before Tuesday’s rally. “I made a tactical mistake, I didn’t think I needed to gather signatures.” There are more than 18,000 registered voters in HD16, with 11,773 of them registered Republicans. Only 92 came to vote at the county convention.

Handy and his wife Holly said that immediately after the county convention, “We had people contacting us, saying ‘Oh, you’ve got to do it. You need to run as a write-in.’ I thought, ‘what?’ So after the emotions calmed down and I began contemplating it, I had some really smart political people in this state, two independent groups look at it, and they told me there is a path here. Holly wholly supported the idea, and I decided to run.” 

Write-in campaigns are tricky, but not impossible to win. At his rally, Handy told how Alaskan Senator Lisa Murkowski successfully won her write-in campaign for reelection, adding with a smile that “Murkowski is a lot harder name to write in than Handy.” 

He pointed out that this year’s path is helped by three things – there is no Democrat in the race (Libertarian Brent Zimmerman and Lee are the only two others on the ballot), there is no longer straight-party voting options in Utah, which means voters have to cast ballots in each race; and the mail-in ballots that voters should receive after Oct. 18 allow for more time for consideration of candidates, rather than having to rush and cast a vote at a booth on election day. Handy hopes for a chance to debate with his two opponents prior to November’s election.

He feels very positive about the response he’s gotten from supporters. He’s collected $50,000 to fund his campaign, along with endorsements from a number of local leaders, including Davis County Commissioner Bob Stevenson and Clearfield Mayor Mark Shepherd, both of whom spoke at the rally.

“I’m pretty well known by voters in this district,” he said. “I served for eight years on the Layton City Council and for six terms, 12 years, in the Legislature. This can be done, and this is why I’m putting myself out there, my qualifications and experience. We are organized, prepared and committed to work for every vote.”

Handy has a website, WriteInHandy.com, where voters can get more information. λ