Long-running debates over the designation of Bears Ears National Monument, a voting rights lawsuit that redrew the county’s election maps to correct for what a federal court determined was racial gerrymandering and other concerns came to a boiling point after two town hall meetings in San Juan County last month, prompting some residents to call for increased dialogue and listening.
A citizen-driven ballot initiative that could lead to a change in the form of government in the future was seen by some as a way to improve the responsiveness of local elected officials and by others as a way to undermine the county’s first majority-Navajo County Commission.