Park City Recorder Michelle Kellogg is challenging incumbent Joey Granger for the Wasatch County clerk-auditor position. Granger is running to work another full term as Wasatch County’s clerk-auditor. Both women are registered Republicans.
Kellogg, a Heber City resident, worked for Heber City for nearly eight years before her 10-year tenure as Park City’s recorder, which is a position appointed by the city manager. Now, she’s looking to use her experience and skills to benefit the Wasatch County community, if she’s elected to the clerk-auditor role.
Meanwhile, Granger said she’s running for another term because she’s “just getting started.” She’s served five years in the role overall, having won election in 2023 after being appointed to the clerk-auditor position for a half-term.
Though elections are a major part of the job, Kellogg said that’s not the only aspect she’s familiar with. As Park City recorder, Kellogg oversees approximately 500 Government Records Access Management Act (GRAMA) requests per year. She also manages city council meetings, putting together material packets and updating municipal code as new ordinances are passed.
The Clerk-Auditor’s Office maintains all countywide elections, prepares agendas, takes minutes during Wasatch County Council meetings and keeps all approved county ordinances and resolutions on file. The office is also responsible for the county’s financial functions, conducting reviews and internal audits and issuing financial statements and reports.
Kellogg filed candidacy for the position on Jan. 2, the day the filing period opened. If elected, Kellogg said she wants to put an emphasis on communication with the public and increase voter turnout countywide. Communication, she said, is something Park City has focused on in her time as city recorder.
Kellogg pointed out that there will be identification verification changes coming in the next few years that have already started to change in counties like Salt Lake County. There, voters will have to include the last four digits of their driver’s license, state identification or social security number on their ballot starting next year. Granger said the adjustment will start in Wasatch County this year, but Kellogg said it’s important to get ahead of the change.
“I would hate just to wait till the last minute and then implement the new changes, and then have to reject a lot of ballots because people didn’t understand the changes,” Kellogg said. “I think it’s really important to communicate the new laws on ID verification so that people will become accustomed to it before that law becomes enacted.”
The job of clerk-auditor, she said, is one of the most important offices in county government.
“At some point, just about everybody comes into the County Clerk’s Office, whether it’s for passports or marriage licenses, to register to vote or to make GRAMA requests. There are so many things that the office does,” Kellogg said. “I think it’s a good office now, but I want to bring it from being a good office to being an excellent office.”
Meanwhile, Granger said she does not feel that she has finished updating services or improving the Clerk-Auditor’s Office overall.
“Modernizing” the office is something Granger said she is proud to have done in the past five years. That involves reorganizing positions and staff to be more efficient and effective in their roles. Granger said she has also worked hard to “clean up the financials” to focus on fiduciary responsibility for Wasatch County taxpayers.
“I want to continue to implement new processes or improve existing services that will serve the public’s needs,” Granger said.
The most rewarding part of her job, Granger said, has been working with the public. Working with the community is the reason Granger started her role in the first place.
“Being able to help people navigate new or challenging situations has been so rewarding,” Granger said.
In turn, Granger said the biggest challenge over her two-and-a-half terms has been the idea that she has not been able to fix problems for everyone.
“What is challenging is not being able to fix things that are out of my control. I feel like sometimes the public expects me to be able to just make any change I see fit, but my role is defined by code and has little room for interpretation,” Granger said.
But Granger said she is dedicated to providing the public with “hometown” personable service. She said she wants to do so while still accommodating the rapid growth of Wasatch County. When it comes to Granger’s top priority if she is elected to the clerk-auditor role again, Granger said she wants to focus on communication. Conveying what programs and services the county is able to help with, she said, is no easy task.
“My top priority for the next term is to provide more information effectively to the public. I want information to be more readily available and easier to understand. With the groundwork I have accomplished this far, it has provided me with the room to be able to focus on more communications going forward,” Granger said.
The Wasatch County Republican Party will host a convention in the spring where delegates will select either Granger or Kellogg as the party’s nominee. A primary election will be held if neither candidate can secure 60% of the vote. However, Granger and Kellogg could also trigger a primary election through signature gathering.
Three County Council seats, the county attorney, the sheriff and two Wasatch County School District board seats are also up for election this year. On the state level, four contenders are vying for Utah House of Representatives District 59, which oversees Wasatch and Summit counties.