Feisty battle of 2 Jrs. begins

Jon Huntsman Jr., the son of the billionaire industrialist and philanthropist by the same name, has lofted good-natured jabs at his Democratic opponent Scott Matheson Jr., the son of the popular former governor with the same name.

"How dare Scott try to ride into office on his dad's coattails," he quips at public events, tongue planted firmly in cheek, given all the Huntsman detractors who say that Huntsman is the one riding into office on his father's coattails.

If the irony of that brand of humor is lost on the general public, it won't be for long as the storied Matheson and Huntsman family names move into the campaign spotlight.

Neither believes his family name will be much of a detraction during the campaign. But each probably wouldn't be his party's standard-bearer without his name, either.

The bottom line is that neither Matheson nor Huntsman has held elected office, neither has a rsum in state government and neither is well-known to the public beyond their famous name.

Matheson, in particular, has kept a low profile while the Republicans slugged it out at the state GOP convention and during the primary election. He only recently hired veteran Democratic consultant Mike Zuhl as his campaign manager, and his Web site wasn't even up and running until last week.

No one's really sure yet where he stands on the issues.

Zuhl calls it "laying low while the other guys were playing 'Survivor.' "

Huntsman, meanwhile, has weathered the state convention and primary, unveiling a plethora of initiatives and plans ranging from economic development to revitalizing tourism to funding education.

In the process, Huntsman has hijacked several issues championed in recent years — although unsuccessfully — by Democrats, things like ethics reform for state government and removing the sales tax from food.

"Those are nuclear issues that clearly resonate with voters over the entire political spectrum," said Huntsman campaign manager Jason Chaffetz. "It was no accident."

It also seems that Huntsman borrowed a bit from the Matheson campaign when, during a speech to state GOP delegates, he thundered that Utah can do better.

That also happens to be Matheson's mantra, one he coined during the state Democratic convention a full year before.