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Park City Council candidate ended campaign weeks ago, but name remains on ballot

Thomas Purcell ended a campaign for the Park City Council in October, but his name remains on the ballot since the withdrawal occurred after they were printed. Any vote for Purcell will not count in the election, City Hall’s election official says.
Courtesy of Thomas Purcell

Any votes that are cast for Thomas Purcell will not count in the City Hall election

Thomas Purcell in early October ended his campaign for the Park City Council.

But voters are seeing his name on the ballot anyway.

Purcell left the contest after the ballots in the vote-by-mail election were printed, meaning he remains one of the options for voters. He is listed first on the City Council section of the ballot, with the three remaining candidates following his name. Voters can select up to two of the candidates.



The ballots started to arrive in mailboxes and post-office boxes in Park City in recent days. The inclusion of Purcell’s name may be a surprise to some who are following the City Hall election since his withdrawal from the contest occurred several weeks ago, and he did not campaign or participate in candidate events during the important October stretch of politicking.

Michelle Kellogg, the Park City recorder and election official, said in an interview any vote for Purcell will not count in the election. She said his vote total will not be released.



“Even if he gets votes, they would not be counted,” she said.

The Park Record was unable to contact Purcell.

Purcell was the fourth-place finisher in the primary election, capturing the final spot on the Election Day ballot. His 327 votes in the primary put him hundreds of votes behind the other three who advanced — Tana Toly, Jeremy Rubell and incumbent City Councilor Tim Henney. Purcell would have needed to mount a significant comeback during the general election season to have won one of the two seats on the ballot.

Purcell at the time of the withdrawal cited ongoing issues with his health as well as personal commitments.

Purcell works in the private equity and real estate investment fields in addition to coaching the boys basketball team at Park City High School. He was part of an especially eclectic field of eight candidates who campaigned for the City Council in the primary season. Four from the primary advanced to Election Day.

Upon entering the campaign in June, Purcell claimed Park City takes an “extremely short-term view” on issues such as the environmental remediation of land. He wanted City Hall to take responsibility for environmental cleanups and pursue them aggressively.

He also argued the municipal government lacks a long-term vision for traffic and transportation, and he proposed to have the Park City Police Department direct traffic on a daily basis. Purcell at the time described Park City traffic as sometimes reminding him of his native Chicago.

While he was a candidate, Purcell was not as visible as some of his competitors. It was unclear what sort of political inroads he made between the fourth-place finish in the August primary election and the time he ended the campaign.

Kellogg acknowledged some voters may cast their ballot for Purcell not realizing he ended the campaign. Others, it seems, could select Purcell in an act of protest to the three City Council candidates.

Election Day is Nov. 2. Information about the election is available on the City Hall website, parkcity.org. The direct link is: parkcity.org/government/election-information.

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