With less than two weeks until Election Day, two write-in candidates — Richard Lyman and his mother, Carol Lyman — are abandoning their bid after being sued by write-in candidate Phil Lyman, who claims Gov. Spencer Cox’s campaign offered Richard Lyman $1,000 and a steak dinner to run.
In a statement from their attorney, Mike Green, Richard and Carol Lyman deny they were offered anything to run for the office, but can’t afford to fight Phil Lyman in court.
“The claims in this lawsuit are false, and we want to make it unequivocally clear that we did nothing wrong and broke no laws,” they said in their statement Friday. “We have every right to run for Governor and Lieutenant Governor and should not have been forced out by those with deeper pockets.”
Cox’s campaign declined to comment on Phil Lyman’s allegations.
Phil Lyman and his running mate, Natalie Clawson, sued Richard and Carol Lyman last week, alleging that the Cox campaign illegally enticed Richard to run because voters who just wrote-in “Lyman” on their ballots would not have their votes count. Phil Lyman’s attorneys argued the campaign suffered $1.7 million in damages because of the alleged conspiracy.
The lawsuit includes an affidavit by James Newson, a coworker of Richard Lyman at a cabinetmaking business. Newson said in early September, Richard Lyman stepped out to take a phone call and when he came back said: “I just talked with the people from the Cox campaign and they are offering me $1,000 and a steak dinner to run as a write-in candidate for governor just to mess with Phil Lyman’s campaign.”
The affidavit includes text messages in which Newson expresses his concern the arrangement might be illegal and Richard Lyman replies: “No it’s all been cleared, and I checked it out. They are setting up an account and donating to me to run and I’m actually the one that’s registering to be a write in.”
Newson suggests he record his conversations and go to Fleming’s or Ruth’s Chris for his steak dinner.
Six days later, Richard Lyman wrote to Newson: “Cox has nothing to do with my write in campaign. I don’t recall mentioning that he did, but if so I misspoke.”
Phil Lyman said Friday he has also reported the allegations to police. It is illegal under Utah law to offer anyone anything of value to run — or not run — for an office.
Green, Richard and Carol Lyman’s attorney, went to the lieutenant governor’s office Thursday evening to file the paperwork for Richard Lyman to withdraw.
In their statement Friday, Richard and Carol Lyman said that “a plan was already in motion to push us out of the race” before they even filed.
“This plan culminated in a frivolous lawsuit that we simply cannot afford to fight,” their statement reads.
But Greg Skordas, a former prosecutor who is now a defense attorney and previously ran for attorney general, said the law makes it illegal to influence another person’s decisions to vote or run for office, which Lyman may have done with his $1.7 million lawsuit.
“Was Phil Lyman’s lawsuit a threat against the other two Lyman’s running as write-in’s for governor?” Skordas asked. “If so, it certainly worked because the other Lymans have now agreed to drop out of the race.”
Skordas said that “the threat seems to have worked as intended” and now it’s up to prosecutors to decide if dropping at least part of the suit in exchange for Richard and Carol Lyman getting out of the race also violates the law.
Carol Lyman also broke a leg days after having knee surgery, which they said also made it difficult for them to campaign. Richard Lyman said he had wanted to run for office since he was young and bring attention to homelessness, addiction and mental health, in hopes of letting Utahns see a candidate who had overcome those issues run for governor.
The lawsuit against Richard Lyman is one of several that Phil Lyman has filed since losing the Republican primary to Cox. Recently he asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his argument that Phil Lyman should be the party’s nominee, rather than Cox, because Phil Lyman beat Cox at the party’s convention.
