I have to admit I'm not a Democrat. But I got the idea for today's front page story a few months ago when I thumbed through an old 1974-vintage encyclopedia. When I accidentally turned to the article on "Utah" I noticed it showed that the number of Democratic and Republican governors since statehood had been almost even. Frankly, I was a bit surprised because things seem so lopsided today. I also remember that when I was a teenager the differences between the Republicans and Democrats who ran for office here in Davis County didn't seem that wide. And having lived in a Texas county that seemed even more heavily Republican than Davis County, I had witnessed the political turmoil that surrounded our district attorney -- whose "crime" was being the lone Democrat in public office.

This led to our discussions with a number of Democratic faithful in Davis County to find out how they feel and why they keep the faith amid a sea of staunch Republicanism. I discovered many fascinating viewpoints, along with one observation I had always suspected: Democrats in Davis County tend to be a lot less radical than many across the nation.

I noticed this recently as I met with people during the Democratic Planning Committee meeting. All those with whom I talked seemed to hold strong family values similar to most of their Republican neighbors. In fact, some had even chosen to live in Davis County because of how great a place they thought it would be to raise their children.

These same folks were decidedly uncomfortable about my questions regarding abortion, gay marriage, the Pledge of Allegiance, burning the flag and a handful of other galvanizing issues that polarize America today. And I thought they would be.

That's because, as I suspected, they didn't fundamentally disagree with most Davis County residents on those issues and were tired of being branded and browbeaten. They pointed to a host of less glamorous issues they felt needed to be addressed -- and which could be supported by many in Davis County and throughout the state.

The only problem, they noted, was that they'll rarely get a chance to contribute their ideas because so many of the electorate are Republicans -- and lots of them vote a straight party ticket. That means if there are 10 races up for grabs all 10 Republicans will get elected even if in three or four of the races the Democratic candidates might be clearly superior. That's because too few voters bother to study the list of candidates to find out. Today's front-page story, therefore, is simply a series of conversations with some of the party faithful in Davis County.

The point isn't to prove them right or wrong, but simply to explore how they feel and to see life from their perspective. I'm confident you'll be intrigued by their struggles and triumphs. Whether it be because of race, religion, place of origin or how we look, all of us are likely to walk lonely paths at some point in our lives.