'Secret votes' hold key

Utahns will go to the polls Tuesday to elect 75 members of the Utah House and 16 state senators.

But it's the secret votes that take place several days later behind closed doors that may end up having a greater influence of state policy, taxes, education funding and road-building than what happens on Election Day.

What are these secret votes?

Leadership elections.

The Republican Party caucuses in the House and Senate will be electing new leaders for the 2007 and 2008 Legislatures. Minority Democrats will be electing new caucus leaders as well, but rarely do Democrats have a meaningful say in policymaking decisions.

The new speaker in the House apparently is not in question — Speaker Greg Curtis, R-Sandy, is running unopposed in his GOP caucus for a second, two-year term.

Democratic Party executive director Todd Taylor says Curtis just may fall Tuesday to Democrat Jay Seegmiller in the general election. "The leadership race in the House could be very interesting" if Curtis is knocked out of office, says Taylor.

But Curtis has a huge cash advantage over Seegmiller in the GOP-voting Sandy District 49 seat.

Republicans believe Curtis will be back to lead them again in the 2007 Legislature.

There is the possibility, however, of an upset in the Senate president race.

It's a re-match of 2004, when Orem Sen. John Valentine beat Sen. Mike Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, for the top Senate post.

Because there are so few senators — just 29 — and Republicans hold only 21 seats before Tuesday's elections, the change of just one or two votes by Republican senators can swing a leadership race.

For example, assuming that Valentine voted for himself, in 2004 he needed just 10 of 20 votes to become Senate president.

Since the caucus votes are secret, it is tough to really know who is backing whom in a leadership race.

Valentine agreed the leadership races can have a big impact on what happens in the Legislature. Even as he's running his own race to continue as Senate president, Valentine said he's also helping Curtis to make sure he stays in the Legislature.

Leadership elections, Valentine said, "could significantly change the way the Legislature does business. If we get a very strident leadership group that's not willing to do things that are not on their agenda, things could come to a screeching halt."

Besides Curtis, the House GOP leadership could have all new faces, depending on the final outcomes.

House Majority Leader Jeff Alexander, R-Provo, has already announced that after he wins re-election Tuesday (he has no Democratic opponent) he will resign to take a part-time volunteer job in Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s economic development office.