Democrat Peter Corroon set to launch run for governor

Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon last month stood at a microphone in a cramped radio studio, headphones on, as he worked his way through a third take of a public service announcement on Medicaid services for county residents.

And he delivered the message in fluent Spanish.

Language skills are just one of a battery of line items Corroon can list on his resume, and all will likely be brought to bear on the political quest he announced Friday — a Democratic gubernatorial challenge of incumbent Gov. Gary Herbert this fall.

And while this latest chapter in Corroon's career is only beginning to unfold, his first steps into the realm of politics were motivated by reading a landmark book in a most appropriate place.

"I spent a year in Washington, D.C., in 1999 working for the Department of Housing and Urban Development," Corroon said in a December interview. "While I was there, I read 'Democracy In America' by Alexis de Tocqueville. He came from France to write about the U.S. prison system and ended up writing about how our government works and how great our democratic system is. That's what got me interested in politics."

Shortly after the HUD stint, an experience Corroon, 45, described as one that opened his eyes to both the good and bad of government, he and his wife, Amy, bought their first house in Salt Lake City. Corroon got involved with his community council, and in 2001 launched an unsuccessful campaign for a Salt Lake County Council seat.

"I didn't finish dead last," Corroon said. "I came in fourth out of five."

Not dissuaded, the Connecticut native headed back to his community council and worked on political campaigns of candidates he liked, both Democrats and Republicans. Then, in 2004, Salt Lake County Democratic Party head Nichole Adams (now Salt Lake County Deputy Mayor Nichole Dunn) called Corroon with an idea: Why not take a shot at Republican Salt Lake County Mayor Nancy Workman?

A challenge of the powerful GOP incumbent by a relatively unknown newcomer, which at first blush appeared to be political folly, became something else entirely when Workman was accused of political shenanigans, including misusing public funds, and dropped out of the race. Before the scandal, Corroon was the only Democrat willing to take a chance.

"No one else wanted it," Corroon told the Deseret News in 2004. "Frankly, I was waiting for somebody to step up. If there had been a stronger candidate (in terms of name recognition), I wouldn't have run."