Running for a State Legislature seat can be difficult, said Logan Taggart, a freshman from Colorado majoring in business finance. Running for a State Legislature seat while living outside of that state, is even harder, he said.
Taggart, who is running for a Colorado State Legislature seat, said, “If someone else wins, no one cares. Someone in rural Colorado won a seat in the state legislature. If a 25 year old wins, it makes a bigger wave.”
Young but experienced
Though young, Taggart is no stranger to running for public office. According to him, at age 18 Taggart became the youngest person ever to hold a seat on the La Veta, Colorado, Town Board. He also ran for mayor of La Veta while serving on the board, but he did not win. Soon after, Taggart served as vice president of the La Veta Chamber of Commerce for two years.
After his mayoral bid came up short, Taggart said he turned his eyes to the state legislature. Taggart said he used the experiences he’s had since then, in local government as well as lessons learned during his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Seattle, Washington, to prepare him for his current campaign.
His platforms
According to Taggart, his platform is rooted in conservative principles, explaining he wants to stick to budgets and keep spending in check. He called out of control spending at any level of government a problem. Taggart said he wants to promote “common sense” principles of government.
One of the main issues facing his district and state is water. Taggart said Northern Colorado needs water because it is a growing population, and Taggart’s district has water.
He said the problem is farmers also need water for their crops. If the water is sold to Northern Colorado, then the farmers can lose their water, and be unable to make a sustainable living.
According to Taggart, the water needs to remain with the farmers. He said, “Farming is a culture, a way of life.” Taggart said keeping the water in Southern Colorado will help preserve their way of life.
Roots for politics
Taggart said his passion for politics came from his parents, who instilled it in him throughout his childhood. Because he is running for office in Colorado while living in Hawaii, Taggart said he relies on his family and others in his support system to aid him in his campaign.
According to Taggart, running for State Legislature while living outside of the state presents a unique set of challenges. He said it makes it harder to connect one on one with the community who’s trust and votes he is trying to gain. To make up for this Taggart said he is active on his Facebook page “Logan Taggart for Colorado Senate” as well as the website he built, “taggartforcolorado.com.”
Taggart said if he wins the election, he will look to balance between his responsibilities in state legislature and school. He said the Colorado State Congress is in session five months of the year and then breaks for the remaining seven months.
Taggart said he plans to continue his education during those seven months, he said he does not want to put off his education if he wins this election.
Taggart’s goal
Taggart’s bid for Colorado State Legislature did not surprise Marley Geroski, a senior from Florida majoring in integrated humanities. Geroski served with Taggart in the Washington Seattle Mission.
“You can tell he wants to influence his community. He loves Colorado and wants to help the people as best he can,” said Geroski.
Taggart said he is grateful to have had opportunities in the past to serve his community and is honored to have the opportunity now to run for office to represent his community so that he can further serve them.
Geroski called Taggart a great leader and said, “He’s not the type [of leader] who doesn’t want you to contribute. He always wants to hear from others and move forward together.”
This reflects Taggart’s approach to his campaign. He said he believes the person who holds office needs to take care of the district as a whole and do what’s best for everyone. He said those in office vote on issues that impact all of Colorado, so he needs to convince people that, while he is young, he “believes in things that will benefit all of Colorado.”
According to Geroski, Taggart is open minded and enjoys learning about new cultures from everyone he meets. “He really embodies the motto, ‘Enter to learn, go forth to serve,” said Geroski.
The importance of young people in politics
Adjunct faculty member at BYUH Derek Whetten said the political voice of the younger generation is needed in order to make positive changes in the world. He said if young people want to see the changes they want, they need to get involved themselves. Whetten said if they don’t get involved, the status quo can’t change.
Whetten explained although it is important for young people to be involved in local politics, they need to know how to do it.
“You can only go so far with liking political memes on Instagram, and protesting and petitioning,” Whetten said. He said young people need to “earn their voices.” He explained what he meant is young people need to take action and get involved by going to city council meetings, making their voices heard and running for offices.
Recalling his own experiences with local government, Whetten said he has seen how few people are involved in local government. He said because so few people get involved, those who do, hold a lot of power.
Whetten encouraged young people to get involved in their local politics, while saying they need to be well prepared when entering public discourse. He said young people can “be as smart as anyone else in the room.” By taking advantage of the resources available, they can educate themselves on all sides of an issue, he said.