Dave Erickson ‘all in’ as candidate for county executive

Cache County council member David L. Erickson is one of four local candidates running to replace Craig Buttars as county executive in a GOP special election of Jan. 30.

CACHE COUNTY – Cache County council member David L. Erickson wants local GOP leaders and precinct officials to know that he’s “all in” and fully committed to his bid to replace outgoing Cache County Executive Craig Buttars in an upcoming special election.

“I have felt throughout my life,” Erickson explains, “that, when approaching all public service opportunities, one should remain pure and not want the position more than the opportunity to serve.

“This attitude has kept us grounded and made those we serve more important than ourselves. This is who we are!”

Erickson is one of four candidates in the running for the now-vacant county executive position. His rivals in the Jan. 30 special election are David Zook, the city manager of Nibley; local businessman Marc Ensign; and transportation executive Ladd Kennington.

If selected to fill that position by fellow Republicans during the upcoming County Central Committee meeting, Erickson promises to promote an equal voice for all towns, cities and residents in county affairs; to foster growth that makes sense and maintains the high standards of Cache Valley culture; to make fiscally responsible decisions; and to solidify the county’s general plan.

Erickson is a Cache Valley native who was raised on a family cattle and crop farm just north of Smithfield. He is a 1986 graduate of Utah State University and taught agriculture sciences at Sky View High School for 31 years prior to his retirement in 2020. In addition to operating Crow Mountain Farms, Erickson is now an appraiser for a local agricultural lending bank.

Erickson says that his personal philosophy is that responsible people should “do what’s right, not what’s convenient.”

His professional experience has included serving on the boards of irrigation companies and several local, state and national agricultural committees. Erickson was first secretary and then president of the Utah Agriculture Educators Committee. He has also been chairman of numerous youth initiatives, including the Cache County Farm Bureau’s Young Farmers and Ranchers program.

Erickson’s public service background includes membership on the County Junior Livestock Board, the County Board of Adjustments and the County Planning and Zoning Board.

He has been a member of the Cache County Council since January of 2015, representing the county’s North District. He was reelected to that seat in 2020.

As a county council member, Erickson has served on committees and boards overseeing review of local ordinances; the county’s fire and emergency medical services; vegetative management; appropriations from local RAPZ and restaurant tax revenues; the county general plan; the county fairgrounds; solid waste disposal; road maintenance; the county budget; the annual fair and rodeo; and the Cache Water District.

Erickson was also recently appointed to the Agriculture and Rural Steering Committee of the National Association of Counties.

Although the upcoming gathering of the local GOP Central Committee is a public meeting, party chair Chris Booth says: “As a COVID precaution, we are encouraging only members of the central committee and county delegates to attend in person.

“We will be streaming the meeting live on our Facebook page for the general public.”

Under state law, local GOP leaders will select a nominee to serve out the remainder of Buttars’ unexpired term as county executive and forward that name to the Cache County Council for approval.

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