CEDAR CITY — Cedar City announced a 2023 City Council election on Wednesday, and at least two candidates have thrown their hats in the ring.
Cedar City issued a public notice stating that a municipal election will be held this year for three council seats. A primary election will occur Aug. 15 if there are sufficient candidates, and the general election is scheduled for Nov. 7.
The seats in question are currently held by council members Terri Hartley, Craig Isom and Tyler Melling, who will complete their four-year terms this year.
Melling said he is currently planning to launch a reelection bid. He described his time in office so far as “interesting.”
“Having started serving in January of 2020, the job has changed quite a bit,” he said. “I am glad that we have addressed several challenges with public funds, water resources, quality of life and infrastructure.”
While there is “plenty of work to do,” Melling said he makes decisions as if someone else would step in at the end of his term.
“I’ve always planned on not ever running again, and that way, I’ve never had to consider reelection,” he said.
However, Melling said he wants to continue working on water-related issues for the city, prompting him to throw his hat in the ring again.
Cedar City News contacted Hartley and Isom for comment but hadn’t heard back at the time of this report.
In 2019, Isom wrote on his campaign’s Facebook page that he was not planning to run in subsequent elections.
“I am pleased with the things that Cedar City has been able to accomplish the last 3.5 years, with my help on the City Council,” he wrote. “I want to continue my work to support our community in critical areas of development and progress by serving a final, 4 year term.”
His long-term focuses as he began the term were infrastructure and development, water resources and planning for growth, among others, according to his post.
“To me, leadership is listening to all sides of an argument and applying decisions to the facts, not hearsay or rhetoric,” he wrote. “I love Cedar City, and Southern Utah where both mom and dad hailed from. This place is, and needs to be preserved as, the greatest place to live, work and play.”
In his time on City Council, Isom committed to various assignments, including the Planning Commission, the City Library Board of Directors and the Economic Development Committee.
Hartley is completing her second term on City Council, according to her city biography. She was born and raised in Cedar City, where she studied accounting at Southern Utah University. She was a vice president and business banker at Wells Fargo for 42 years. “Passionate about being involved with our local businesses,” she was active with the Cedar City Chamber of Commerce for many years.
“In her spare time, Terri loves snowmobiling, mountain biking, hiking, and rappelling — really anything related to the outdoors, which really makes Cedar City the perfect place to be,” the biography states.
On Wednesday, Hartley wrote in support of potential candidate Mary Pearson on Facebook, stating that she would be an “outstanding council member” and encouraged her followers to vote.
One of the first to announce a bid, Pearson said she plans to kick off her campaign on June 6.
“We need people who know how to work together with good will, just like the generations before us did in creating Cedar City,” she wrote. “I’m committed to using my background in business, leadership, and effective collaboration to help make Cedar the best place it can be, and I look forward to hearing from you and listening to your ideas and concerns.”
To qualify for candidacy, a person must maintain their principal residence and be registered to vote in Cedar City. And they must have resided in Cedar City or a territory annexed into the city for the 12 consecutive months preceding the election. Additionally, a would-be candidate must be 18 years or older and a U.S. citizen. Filers may be required to pay a fee.
According to the notice, people who have been declared mentally incompetent and those who have been convicted of a felony, treason or an election-related crime do not qualify in most cases. However, there are circumstances where a person previously convicted of a felony could run; for instance, if all of their convictions have been expunged.
Alternatively, they may still qualify if it has been 10 years or longer since their last felony conviction, all court-order institutions and fines have been paid, or if they completed probation, been granted parole or completed any associated terms of incarceration.
Those interested in running can file a Declaration of Candidacy with City Recorder Renon Savage during the filing period set for June 1-7. The recorder’s office, located at 10 North Main Street, is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. According to the notice, all candidates are subject to campaign finance disclosure regulations.
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