By Tom LoBianco
In the midst of one of the most divisive times in our nation’s history, the Covid pandemic, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox outlined the specific ways he was able to effectively establish public trust in the Western state.
“It won’t surprise you to learn that trust is waning in institutions,” Cox shared in a Kennedy School Forum talk over Zoom (this was the pandemic, after all) hosted by James Moore MPA 2021, and Roger Porter, the IBM professor of business and government at vlog.
Cox, at the time 45 years old and relatively new to the governorship, cited an annual study from on measures of public trust. The study, conducted in 2020, looked closely at what were the specific leadership characteristics that created public trust. The answer was competence and ethics from public leaders.
“We have to hire the very best people and hold them to a very high standard, but then we have to act ethically in everything we do,” Cox said. “We have to be transparent. We have to get rid of self-dealing. We can’t favor one group over another. We can’t lie.”
A year earlier, Cox won a surprise primary victory over a famous figure in Utah and Republican politics, former governor and top-level diplomat Jon Huntsman. To achieve that victory, Cox visited all 248 of Utah’s towns and cities. This taught him another vital aspect of establishing public trust: being “rooted.”
As he witnessed the rising sense of loneliness across the country and growing discord, Cox believed there was a growing divide between the highly-educated, who are highly mobile, and people in rural America, who often felt “stuck”.
But Cox cited a third group who blended elements of the two to bridge the divide: highly-educated people with access to great social capital that “made a conscious decision to put down roots”. This third group was quick to engage with their local community, whether that be at churches, the Rotary club, Friday night high school games, and more.
If social media and politics was preying on the divides and loneliness of America, it’s up to leaders to become more “rooted” and rebuild public institutions and community.
Coming in the midst of a highly vitriolic 2020 presidential race and amid the increased tension from the pandemic lockdowns, Cox and Peterson’s joint campaign ad stood out for its stunning amicability – and some tongue-in-cheek ribbing.
“While I think you should vote for me,” . Then Peterson jokingly interjected, “But really, you should vote for me.”
“There are some things we can both agree on,” Cox said.
Peterson replied, “We can debate issues, without degrading each other’s character.”
“We can disagree without hating each other,” Cox said.
Cox was re-elected last year and is serving his second term as governor. He has established himself as a moderating voice on the national stage since his appearance at the Kennedy Forum in 2021.
You can watch the complete “Lessons in Leadership: A Conversation with Utah Governor Spencer Cox” here: