US Senate candidate Trent Staggs hosts town hall in Provo
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- Trent Staggs, mayor of Riverton and candidate for U.S. Senate, speaks at a town hall at the Provo City Library on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023.
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- Trent Staggs, mayor of Riverton and U.S. Senate candidate, talks with attendees during a town hall at the Provo City Library on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023.
Riverton mayor and candidate for U.S. Senate Trent Staggs held a town hall in Provo on Monday night tackling topics like small government, public lands and the 2020 election.
Staggs describes himself as an anti-establishment candidate, saying Monday that the Senate race is about “electing somebody to replace Mitt Romney that has proven the demonstrated resolve to take on the establishment.”
The event was held in the Provo City Library, with Staggs taking questions and discussing policy issues with about 20 people who attended.
Concerns about election integrity surfaced multiple times during the town hall, with Staggs expressing his own concern about alleged — but widely disproven — fraud during the 2020 election.
“I think there are legitimate cases of fraud in the 2020 election, without a doubt,” Staggs said, adding that he would prefer to have only paper ballots with photo ID for voting.
Claims of widespread voter fraud during the 2020 election have not been proven, according to the Campaign Legal Center and various news outlets.
Staggs has been endorsed by Kari Lake, a 2022 Arizona gubernatorial candidate who has also floated claims of election fraud in both 2020 and in her defeat for the Arizona governorship in 2022, according to The Associated Press. Lake also did a fundraising event with Staggs in September, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.
Staggs said he has three encompassing priorities for his campaign — smaller government, safer families and a stronger economy.
A balanced budget and improved budgetary process in Congress is the No. 1 issue, Staggs said, adding he does not support omnibus spending bills, which package smaller budget bills together into one larger piece of legislation.
He also expressed support for reducing taxes, backing the Second Amendment and curbing government regulation. Additionally, Staggs said during the town hall that he supports eliminating the U.S. Department of Education.
Regarding a stronger economy, Staggs discussed wanting the United States to not just be energy dependent but energy dominant. He added he believes the issue of energy dominance is “coupled greatly” with public lands.
Staggs pointed out that 63% of Utah’s land is owned by the federal government, saying federal government landownership has “decimated” communities.
One attendee asked Staggs about his plans to win in the state’s Republican primary against other candidates like Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson, with the mayor responding that he believes there’s “definitely” a path to securing the GOP nomination.
Staggs touted endorsements from national conservative figures like Lake and Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, and added he’s had some support from state GOP delegates. He said he would not be gathering signatures for the primary, instead relying on gaining support among state delegates.
In Utah, there are two paths for candidates to be placed on the ballot for a party’s primary election — gathering a certain amount of signatures from voters or receiving a nomination from party delegates.
“But I think that there is a pathway, that we have a strong sense of support right now,” he said.
The Riverton mayor views the Senate race is largely between him and Wilson, saying, “I think it’s a pretty stark contrast between (Wilson) as the establishment player and me as the conservative candidate.” He also mentioned renewed interest from U.S. Rep. John Curtis in joining the Senate race, saying it would be “interesting” to see another moderate in the running.
Other candidates for the Senate seat include former Mike Lee staffer Carolyn Phippens, Roosevelt Mayor Rod Bird, political commentator Tyrone Jensen, data scientist Gabriel Lobo-Blanco and accountant Josh Randall.
