In a move that would give politicians unprecedented control over election debates, Utah's Republican-controlled Legislature is fast-tracking a bill to dismantle the state's independent debate system and replace it with a committee made up of political appointees.
The legislation would effectively sideline the Utah Debate Commission, which has independently managed the state's political debates since 2013 through a non-partisan coalition of media organizations, higher education institutions and community leaders. The commission is currently headed by former Utah State Representative Becky Edwards and Phil Cooper.
HB557 from Republican Rep. Nelson Abbott would create a state-funded 11-person committee made up of political appointees picked by the governor and legislative leadership. Seven members would be selected by Republicans and the remaining four by Democrats.
Under the proposed system, politicians would gain control over crucial aspects of electoral debates. The government-appointed body would be responsible for coordinating and hosting debates ahead of gubernatorial and congressional elections, and would pick the moderators and establish the criteria for candidate participation. Currently, the commission relies on polling data to determine which candidates qualify for debate participation. The legislation also suggests the committee would have the authority to decide which topics are covered during a debate.
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The committee would also be responsible for ensuring "fair and professional conduct" during debates and would be required to "maintain political neutrality." However, the proposed bill does not define any of those terms, so what they mean could be left up to the discretion of the committee.
Abbott's bill also creates a 10-person advisory board, selected by the committee, consisting of representatives from media organizations, higher education institutions and others. The advisory board would provide input to the committee on debate planning, moderators and topics but would not have authority to make final decisions.
Utah Republicans have been at odds with the Utah Debate Commission recently.
- In 2022, then-Utah GOP Chairman Carson Jorgensen demanded that the party have a role in selecting the moderator and topics for five pre-primary debates scheduled by the commission. When the commission balked, the Utah GOP announced they would host their own debates. Several Republican candidates skipped the Debate Commission events in favor of the party sponsored debates.
- The 2022 debate during the hotly contested U.S. Senate race between Republican Mike Lee and independent Evan McMullin was marred when Lee’s camp was able to pack the audience with raucous supporters because they gained access to the system for requesting tickets several hours before the McMullin campaign. The pro-Lee crowd had to be admonished several times during the event.
- Also in 2022, Rep. Burgess Owens pulled out of a debate just hours before it was supposed to start because he objected to the selection of a Salt Lake Tribune editor as moderator.
- In 2020, then-Attorney General Sean Reyes was angered by a question about COVID-related mask mandates during a debate with Democrat Greg Skordas. Reyes claimed he had told the commission he was unable to answer questions on that topic because of pending litigation against the state. Commission leaders claimed Reyes had made no such request.
