Democrats in Salt Lake County, you wouldn't have known it from the 2004 results, when Republicans got clobbered in several races. Even Jon Huntsman, who won big statewide, lost by 20,000 votes in the county to Scott Matheson. That has to be a wake-up call. The reality is that east-bench Republicans are more than happy to vote for good Democratic candidates at all levels.

So new county party leaders have a big job ahead. Former Salt Lake County Council member Steve Harmsen and former state senator James Evans, both defeated in 2004, are the frontrunners for county chairman. They apparently don't want to run against each other, and one may drop out and support the other. The winner must seek to eliminate the internal squabbling so the party can focus hard on candidate recruitment and grass-roots organizing to win elections.

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Republican LaVarr Webb was policy deputy to Gov. Mike Leavitt and Deseret News managing editor. He now is a political consultant and lobbyist. E-mail: lwebb@exoro.com. Democrat Frank Pignanelli is Salt Lake attorney, lobbyist and political adviser. A former candidate for Salt Lake City mayor, Pignanelli served 10 years in the Utah House of Representatives, six years as House minority leader. Pignanelli's spouse, D'Arcy Dixon Pignanelli, is executive director of the state Department of Administrative Services in the Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. administration. E-mail: frankp@xmission.com.