Left to right, Utah attorney general candidates Rudy Bautista (Democrat), Derek Brown (Republican), Andrew McCullough (Libertarian), and Michelle Quist (United Utah), participate in the Utah Debate Commission’s debate at Southern Utah University on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (Photo by Asher Swan/Southern Utah University)
Whether Utah voters elect a Republican, Democrat, United Utah Party candidate or a Libertarian, the state’s next attorney general will be focused on transparency and restoring trust to the office.
That’s at least according to their statements Tuesday evening at Southern Utah University, with all four candidates crowding the debate stage to argue their case to become the state’s top lawyer and law enforcement officer.
Put on by the Utah Debate Commission, it was the first and only debate in the race for Utah attorney general, and the candidates — Derek Brown, a Republican; Rudy Bautista, a Democrat; Michelle Quist, a United Utah Party candidate; and Andrew McCullough, a Libertarian — all made clear that they want to run the office differently than the three former attorneys general.
Current Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes, who has held the seat since 2013, announced he would not seek reelection in 2023 amid scandal, stemming from his ties with embattled anti-trafficking activist Tim Ballard.
Reyes is the third Utah attorney general to leave the office with controversy. Mark Shurtleff, who served from 2001 to 2013, was charged with bribery and accepting gifts, but those charges were later dropped. John Swallow, who served in 2013, was accused of extorting money and favors from a wealthy businessman who had reached a plea deal with the office, and was acquitted at trial.
From their opening remarks to their closing statements, all candidates in some way touched on ways to restore trust.
Brown said he would establish an ethics committee to minimize potential conflicts of interest and set up “guardrails.” Bautista vowed to get “rid of all the shame and embarrassment” surrounding the office on day one. Quist said she would cease Reyes’ current legal effort against media companies to hide his calendar. McCullough said he wouldn’t join the “good ol’ boys club” of corruption.
All candidates said they would make their schedules public.
The office’s reputation came up early in the debate, when a Southern Utah University student asked, “how specifically would you restore trust to the office and integrity?”
McCullough, the first to answer, said he doesn’t intend to run for reelection.
“I’m 76 years old. I don’t intend to grandstand. I don’t intend to build myself up. I don’t intend to run for Senate afterward. I just intend to do my business,” which is getting the government “off of people’s backs,” said the Libertarian.
Bautista said that he’s committed to be “honest and forthright,” while ensuring the public will have access to what’s happening in the office. He reiterated that his calendar will be public, going a step further to say that every lawmaker should disclose their schedule, accusing the legislature of passing an “unconstitutional” law in 2024 that made calendars for public officials a protected record.
“Since I have 25 years of in-court experience, I believe the attorney general should run and lead by example, and be in court themselves,” said Bautista.
Brown called transparency “a critical piece” of the attorney general’s duties.
“The way you create trust is by creating transparency and doing your job. And when people know what you’re doing, when you’re disclosing what you’re doing, people will trust you, they’ll understand what you’re doing,” Brown said.
Quist told the crowd that rebuilding the reputation of the office is why she is running. With no major party affiliation, she can avoid the conflicts of interest that plagued former attorneys general, she argued.
Utah attorneys general candidates, left to right, are pictured in this screenshot from the Utah Debate Commission’s debate Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024 with Rudy Bautista (Democrat), Derek Brown (Republican), Andrew McCullough (Libertarian), and Michelle Quist (United Utah). (Screenshot, Utah Debate Commission)
Quist took shots at Brown throughout the night for his relationship with Meta, who he previously represented.
“My opponent Mr. Brown has taken donations from conflicting parties,” she said, listing off several campaign contributions. “He’s also represented Meta. The state has a current case against Meta. Legal ethics do not allow attorneys to file cases against former clients. These are clear conflicts of interest. We need an attorney general who does not have conflicts of interest. Only an independent attorney general can do that.”
In response to Quist, Brown called the criticism that he represented Meta a “non-starter.” Law firms deal with conflicts of interest all the time, he said, including the Utah Attorney General’s Office.
Later during the debate when asked about the state’s fight against social media companies — including a state law imposing default restriction on accounts belonging to minors, which was recently paused by a federal judge — Brown said that he had represented Meta, and helped bring the company to the table to work with Utah lawmakers.
After that response, Quist jumped quickly on Brown.
“Mr. Brown noted again that he represented Meta. That is a clear conflict of interest, but I don’t understand why he doesn’t understand. If he had legal experience, he would know that a lawyer cannot sue a former client,” she said.
Brown said there are almost 300 lawyers working for the attorney general’s office — “The issue of conflicts and former clients is dealt with on a regular, routine basis. Ms. Quist should know that, she’s just hoping that you don’t know that,” he said.
Quist responded: “I do know that, but then he shouldn’t trump up his experience, because he can’t use it.”
Brown, with the final word, told the audience “enough has been said” on the subject.
The debate also touched on issues like public land, and whether the state should continue its recent lawsuit attempting to take over nearly 18.5 million acres controlled by the Bureau of Land Management — Brown said he supports the effort, while the other candidates were skeptical.
Candidates also discussed Amendment D, a controversial attempt by the Utah Legislature to amend the state constitution and give lawmakers more power to control the ballot initiative process, which was ultimately thrown out by the Utah Supreme Court.
Again, Brown signaled support for putting the proposed amendment on the ballot, while other candidates called it misleading.
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