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Teton County Commission Chair Mark Newcomb said he does not plan to run for reelection.
“I can’t really say for sure until the date passes,” the alpinist and economist said in a true-to-form hedge. “Professionally, I kind of want to do something different.”
After 12 years as a county commissioner, and six years before that as a volunteer planning commissioner, Newcomb said he’s not yet sure what the next chapter will be.
“It’s been just a huge honor,” he said. “I’m continually impressed that the community chose, essentially, a climbing guide and ski bum as a commissioner.”
The son of the late Exum Mountain Guides co-owner Rod Newcomb, Mark is the only sitting commissioner who was raised in Teton County. Before entering politics, he built a prolific mountain climbing and guiding career himself, including first descents in the Tetons and becoming a co-owner of Exum.
The Democrat served through a period of Jackson Hole’s history marked by extreme economic change.
“[In 2014], we had just come out of the recession, the Walgreens landslide,” said former Town Councilor Jim Stanford. Wealth inequality accelerated in the late 2010s and surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, compounding the challenges of governing growth and conservation, Stanford said.
The proliferation of large, luxury homes has created more jobs, stressed demand for housing and placed additional strain on transportation. That’s a reverberation Newcomb said he wished he’d seen coming.
His hope for the next group of candidates is that they understand the often murky work of county commissioners, specifically land development regulations.
“That’s where you can control the future of this community,” he said.
In a rapidly shifting environment, Newcomb has built a reputation for thoughtfulness.
“Sometimes to his detriment,” Stanford said. “I say that lovingly.”
The two occasionally hiked Snow King together and talked shop, regardless of whether Newcomb showed up in jeans or Carhartt pants.
On major and often controversial votes, including deed-restricted housing in a former assisted living facility and the multi-year saga of the mostly deed-restricted Northern South Park neighborhood, several observers said Newcomb was not known for predictable decisions.
He described his own governing style as an effort to balance conservation in some areas with density and economic opportunity in others.
“What I’ve tried to do is fulfill the vision of the comprehensive plan,” Newcomb said.
Newcomb is the first of four town and county board incumbents to state an intent not to run this election cycle.
After his first four-year term, Commissioner Wes Gardner said he plans to run again. He cited a commitment to addressing what he views as a community “tipping point” for housing and conservation.
Gardner said working with Newcomb was critical to his own development as a commissioner.
“I couldn’t ask for a better mentor,” Gardner said. “His attention to detail and work behind the scenes is unparalleled.”
Commissioner Luther Propst, who will complete his second term this year, said in a text message that he is still evaluating his plans and may decide closer to March. Town Councilor Jonathan Schechter, also first elected in 2018, declined to comment on whether he plans to run. Town Councilor Alyson Spery was appointed to an open seat in 2025 and said she is still mulling the decision to run for her first election.
The filing deadline for candidates is May 13, ahead of the Aug. 18 primary.
This post has been updated to correctly attribute the photo caption and include Spery’s comments. — Ed.
