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Voters oust senator with ties to Summit County

Patrick Parkinson, Of the Record staff

Summit County’s chief civil attorney who serves Davis and Weber counties in the state Senate was ousted in last week’s Republican primary.

Voters snubbed South Weber resident David Thomas in favor of Ogden police Chief Jon Greiner, who garnered 54 percent of the votes.

Greiner criticized Thomas, who is finishing his first term on Utah’s Capitol Hill, for putting the needs of Summit County ahead of his constituents.

As Summit County’s chief civil deputy attorney, Thomas is currently defending the county against several high-profile attacks in court.

Thomas supported legislation that concerned property rights and eminent domain and did not address many urban concerns, Greiner said.

"[Thomas] was spending an inordinate amount of time working on issues primarily for Summit County," he said. "Mr. Thomas, if you’re going to represent Senate District 18 represent Senate District 18, not Summit County."

Thomas was not available for comment before press time.

Meanwhile, Greiner credits strong support from law enforcement for his victory.

"They asked me to run because of a couple of issues," Greiner added.

Thomas recently helped scuttle a bill that could have provided undercover officers money to buy drugs, he said.

"It was only for a million dollars so entities can apply for grants," Greiner said about the one-time funding.

He also blames Thomas for removing money from state coffers intended for training new officers.

When Thomas refused to speak to cops during a committee meeting this year on the Hill "I said, ‘somebody needs to run against this guy," Greiner said.

"Thomas wouldn’t return phone calls," he added.

Greiner faces a senatorial challenge in the November general from Democrat Stuart Reid.


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