St. George voters have spoken, and city councilor Jimmie Hughes appears to be headed for his first term as mayor. After initial ballot returns on election night, Hughes sits with a 1,820-vote lead over incumbent Mayor Michele Randall.
This year’s mayoral race was a rematch of the 2021 contest, when Randall defeated Hughes.
If current margins hold, Hughes is set to lead one of the fastest-growing cities in one of the fastest-growing counties in the nation. St. George is projected to add more than 175,000 residents in the next 25 years, and the population of Washington County is expected to double to more than 400,000 by 2050. Some residents worry that growth is happening too fast, despite the economic boost to the city’s tax revenue.
Hughes would be the 34th mayor of St. George. He is a St. George native and has served on the city council since 2011. His family owns and operates Hughes Mortuary and a cattle ranch on the Arizona strip.
Though voters faced a choice, St. George’s future was likely to follow a similar path regardless of who won on election night. After an Oct. 13 debate at Utah Tech University, the candidates offered little difference between each other.
On key issues like enhancing infrastructure, support for the Northern Corridor Highway and the city’s growing need for affordable housing, the two were in lockstep. Both candidates also sang the city’s praises as a family-friendly place to live.
The only real difference came on the issue of property taxes and whether a proposed increase was Randall’s idea or not.
Growth management will hardly be the only thing on Hughes’ plate over the next four years. His administration will face perennial issues like water and maintaining the city's unique identity as the center of life in southern Utah, while the region continues to change.
Randall’s tenure as mayor has not been without controversy, something Hughes alluded to during their debate. In 2023, she faced protests and accusations of infringing on free speech rights when she temporarily instituted a policy that prohibited in-person public comments at city council meetings.
She wrote at that time that she felt the policy was necessary because “public comment has turned into the same people saying the same things, mostly regarding social issues. It was starting to get very divisive.”
Hughes said that he wanted “more opportunity for public input, not less.”
That same year, the city was sued over denying a permit to drag show performers, for which it ultimately apologized and settled.
