This is your daily news rundown for Wednesday, June 10. In this edition:
- A former journalist will now serve on the Salt Lake City Council
- Roy’s annual fireworks show is back on thanks to a donation
- A recent Senate campaign ad included a false endorsement
A coin toss determined the new Salt Lake City Council seat
A coin flip landed Jennifer Napier-Pearce, former executive editor of the Salt Lake Tribune, a seat on the Salt Lake City Council.
Previous council member Eva Lopez Chavez was removed last month after an investigation found she didn’t live within her district’s boundaries.
The council interviewed over two dozen applications for the vacated seat, then found itself in a voting deadlock on Tuesday over two finalists.
So they let it go to a coin toss: heads for Napier-Pearce, and tails for small business owner Scott Lyttle.
It landed on heads, which means Napier-Pearce will be the new District 4 representative for Salt Lake City. Her term concludes January 3, 2028.
Roy’s annual fireworks show is back on
Roy’s annual fireworks show will happen this year after all, thanks to a donation from a Utah lawmaker’s nonprofit.
Last week, the Roy City Council cancelled the show for their annual Roy Days festival because of concerns about budget, drought, and safety.
The next day, however, Utah House Speaker and Roy resident Mike Schultz offered to fund the show for $35,000 dollars through the Mike and Melissa Schultz Foundation.
An anonymous donor is also paying for police to work the event.
The donations don’t resolve issues of drought and safety, but Councilmember Janel Hulbert said budget had been the primary concern.
This Utah Senate campaign ad included a false endorsement
A Utah Senate candidate put out an ad with a false endorsement.
Longtime state lawmaker Dan McCay put out an ad for his District 18 campaign in a Hometown Values magazine that included endorsements from elected officials.
One of those pictured was Senator John Curtis — but Curtis said he hasn’t endorsed either Republican in the race.
In a statement, McCay’s campaign said his team sent the wrong template for printing and it was supposed to show Sen. Mike Lee instead. They also said McCay had not seen or signed off on the ad.
McCay’s opponent, Rep. Doug Fiefia, was more critical, claiming the move had been intentional.
