The upcoming special election in San Juan County represents an important step in bridging a gaping cultural and political divide.
Think of it as a proxy referendum on U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby's recent ruling in a landmark voting rights case that, in effect, attempted to solve the problem of unfair and undemocratic gerrymandered county districts by imposing unfair and undemocratic gerrymandered districts on the county.
The intervention “sliced and diced” the county’s largest population center, Blanding, marginalizing the votes of many Anglos as well as a large concentration of Navajos.
Although the state-established process to change the way the county works was under consideration before Shelby's ruling and last year's county commission election, practically speaking the Nov. 5 election represents a chance for San Juan voters to challenge that ruling at the ballot box.
It’s an opportunity to create a better form of government, including one in which each vote counts equally toward election results and county governance with checks and balances. Currently, San Juan’s three-person commission is both a legislative and executive governing body.
For now, the question up for vote is merely a first step: Should a committee be formed to study the merits of an alternative form of county government? Nothing more.
Any eventual change brought about in good faith across partisan lines could foster a sense of electoral fairness among all county residents — a crucial ingredient in bridging San Juan's monumental divide and successful governance.
Bill Keshlear, Salt Lake City