After losing in this week’s Republican primary, Box Elder County Commissioner Lee Perry said it plainly: His vote clearing the way for a massive data center campus cost him his seat.
It apparently took the same toll on his fellow commissioner, Boyd Bingham.
“Do I think that the data center vote cost me the election? Yes I do,” Perry said Wednesday. “Would I do anything different? ... I wouldn’t vote differently, but I would push back against the state and make them come out publicly and tell everybody why they’re forcing it down our throat.”
Bingham and Perry conceded defeat Wednesday in their suddenly highly visible contests.
Perry fell to challenger Nathan Tueller, who, according to the latest unofficial returns, captured 54% of the vote to Perry’s 46%. Tueller is unopposed in November’s general election.
Vance Smith, meanwhile, outpaced Bingham, 52% to 48%. Smith will face unaffiliated candidate Alan Williams in the fall.
“I would like to congratulate the incoming leadership and wish them the best going forward,” Bingham wrote on social media. “My hope always is for the well-being of Box Elder County.”
Data campus sparks controversy
The election came on the heels of the current commissioners’ decision to pave a path for the massive Stratos project — a proposed hyperscale data center campus being developed by celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary. The plan brought the three-member County Commission local and national scrutiny.
The project could span about 20,000 acres just north of Great Salt Lake, igniting concerns over water use and potential environmental effects.
Last month, the commissioners voted to let Utah’s Military Installation Development Authority create the Stratos project area, meaning the quasi-government group can override county zoning and land use regulations.
Although Perry and Bingham took part in a unanimous vote earlier this month to impose a 180-day moratorium on new data centers in Box Elder County, that move will not impact the Stratos project. During a public comment period at the meeting where the decision was made, many county residents saw the move as too little, too late.
Smith said the Stratos project likely played a part in the election, though he believes the results also represent a preexisting desire for stronger leadership.
“There’s just a handful of folks that are ready for the change,” he said. “They recognize the need for it, like I did when I announced my candidacy back in January.”
For his part, Tueller emphasized that he decided to run months before public conversation about the data center campus erupted. With 10 years of leadership experience from sitting on the Perry City Council, he wanted to help the county as it grows.
He said Box Elder County could have been better about sharing information surrounding the Stratos project, but he still believes the commission made the right call to stay at the table.
“Based on trying to protect the county,” he said, “saying yes was the right thing to do.”
Challenger says commission made right call
Speaking outside a voting center Tuesday at Utah State University’s Brigham City campus, voter Brandon Black said his concerns over the commission’s Stratos decision led him to cast his ballot against Perry and Bingham.
“I was pretty disappointed with the incumbents,” he said. “... What they should have done is at least presented it to some of the residents in terms of a ballot vote or something.”
Other voters, however, felt the commission did the best it could, given the state’s say in the project.
“I agree with what the commissioners did,” said Karie Kaminsky. “They tried to have an open meeting and got bombarded by so many protesters that they couldn’t share the information that they were trying to share with the county.”
‘No legal basis’ to vote against Stratos
Ahead of the primary, Bingham took to his campaign’s Facebook page to defend his decision, saying state leaders left the commissioners little choice.
“We approved a project area that if we had voted no to, would have brought lawsuits that our county would lose,” he wrote in a post. “Taxpayer dollars would have been spent, not insurance money since we had no legal basis to stand on for a no vote.”
