And that advantage, some say, continues to push the party further to the right and further from mainstream Utahns.

"There's a history in Utah of the ultraconservative wing of the party monopolizing the nominating process," said GOP delegate David Irvine, who chaired the Davis County party in the 1970s.

Irvine, like some of his Utah County counterparts, finds the practice of withholding delegate e-mails disturbing, because some manage to nab the lists while others do not.

Don Guymon, a legislative district chairman and member of the county party's executive committee, surveyed all of Davis' candidates with his own set of questions.

Guymon recently e-mailed their responses to all of the county delegates, along with a request for convention volunteers.

What irks Irvine is the fact that he would like to do the same, asking a different set of questions. But he can't get the list.

"We don't release those addresses," Davis County Republican Chairman Ben Horsley said Friday. "We'll send an e-mail in [candidates'] behalf."

Horsley cites complaints by delegates of past e-mail abuse and spamming as reasons for withholding the addresses. Plus it mirrors the state party's new policy.

As for Guymon's surveys, the county's executive committee decided the candidate responses would benefit delegates.

"So we sent it out," Horsley said.

Guymon said he obtained the county delegate e-mail list after explaining his intent.

"I'm providing a service. I did official party business with that list," Guymon said.

One candidate considers the e-mail policy hypocritical, in light of legislators recently sinking a bill that would remove birth dates from voter registration rolls.

"I say give them out," said Ron Mortensen, one of eight contenders in the Senate District 23 race.

That's how it's done in Weber County.

"As soon as we get all our lists together, we post it on the Web site," said Matt Bell, Weber County GOP chairman. "I'd just as soon have the information out there."

cmckitrick@sltrib.com