KAYSVILLE — The Davis County Democratic Party now has a headquarters to call home for the first time in anyone's memory.

An open house is planned tonight from 5-8 p.m. at the headquarters, 7 E. Crestwood, Kaysville. The public is invited to come and meet candidates, including state and local Democratic candidates, said county chairman Richard Watson.

Gubernatorial candidate Scott M. Matheson Jr. and attorney general candidate Paul Van Dam are expected to make appearances, Watson said.

Campaign materials will be available at the open house as well as light refreshments, Watson said. "It's going to be pretty informal, just a chance for people to see where we're at."

He said the visibility of the headquarters is already helping the party with people walking in off the street and signing up to volunteer for party activities. "People are starting to see there are other Democrats in the county," he said.

Volunteers will staff the headquarters during the day, Watson said.

No Democrats hold elected office in Davis County, and registered Republicans outnumber them on the active registration rolls by 7-1, with 7,610 registered as of Thursday and active Republicans numbering 51,080.

Voters who have registered as unaffiliated, however, are the largest group in the county at 69,556, according to Pat Beckstead, elections coordinator for the Clerk/Auditor's Office.

Watson attributes some of the poor showing at the polls for Democrats on discouragement of the party's members. "Some years back we had an active party, but it went into decline and I'm not sure why. We had good leaders, but we just went through a period of discouragement."

The last time Davis County had a Democratic commissioner was 14 years ago.

While Davis County has grown considerably in recent years, Beckstead said the number of registered Democrats, as a percentage of the population, has stayed about the same, with the party growing mostly in the northern half of the county, near the Weber County line.

Only one Democrat is running for a county office this year, Chris Martinez. In all, including Martinez, there are 11 Democrats seeking public office from Davis County, Beckstead said.

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E-mail: lweist@desnews.com