12 Facts About Merrill Cook

Merrill Alonzo Cook was born on May 6,1946 and is an American politician and businessman who served as a Republican Party member in the United States House of Representatives from Utah.

Merrill Cook was hired as a budget analyst by Arthur D Little, Inc and in 1973 founded Cook Slurry Company, a mining explosives manufacturer, of which he served as president and chief executive.

Merrill Cook ran for Utah Board of Education in 1984, Mayor of Salt Lake City in a 1985 special election, and Salt Lake County Commission in 1986, all to no avail.

However, in 1996, after incumbent Republican Enid Greene announced she wouldn't run for reelection due to a scandal, Merrill Cook rejoined the Republican Party.

Merrill Cook managed to come in second at the state convention behind the choice of the party establishment, Salt Lake City accountant R Todd Neilson, getting just enough votes to deny Neilson the nomination outright.

Merrill Cook won the primary a few months later by 4 percentage points.

In 1998, Merrill Cook was accused of instances of erratic behavior.

Merrill Cook was briefly banned from state Republican headquarters after an obscenity-laced tirade, his reaction to being told his name had been eliminated from a GOP get-out-the-vote effort to which Cook's campaign had contributed $25,000.

However, in an ominous sign, Merrill Cook was forced into a primary against computer tycoon Derek Smith, who was making his first run for elected office.

Merrill Cook ran for mayor of Salt Lake County in 2004 as an independent, but garnered only 8 percent of the vote in a race won by Democrat Peter Corroon.

Merrill Cook ran for his old seat in the 2nd district in the 2008 election.

Merrill Cook ran for the Republican nomination for US Senate in 2010 against incumbent Bob Bennett, but did not make it past the first round of balloting at the state convention.