SALT LAKE CITY – Choosing to optimistically view their political glass as half-full, Utah Democrats are now hailing their modest state and local victories in the Nov. 5 general election.
“As this monumental election cycle comes to an end, I am proud of the work done by Utah Democratic candidates, Democratic staffers and our amazing volunteers,” according to Diane Lewis, the chair of the state’s Democratic Party.
“As of this moment,” she added in a statement released Nov. 6, “Democratic candidates hold leads in all the Salt Lake county-wide races, as well as several highly competitive state legislative races.”
Salt Lake County has long been a bastion of liberalism in deep red Utah.
In the Legislature, where 15 of 29 Senate seats were up for grabs, three incumbent Democrats are on track to retain their seats – Luz Escamilla in Senate District 10, Karen Kwan in Senate District 12 and Kathleen Ann Riebe in Senate District 15.
In the Utah House, all 75 seats were in contention during the general election.
Of that number, unofficial results show Democrats are now leading in 14 races, including Sandra Holllins in House 21, Jennifer L. Daily-Provost in House 22, Hoang Nguyen in House 23, Grant Amjad Miller in House 24, Angela Romero in House 25, Jake Fitisemanu in House 30, Verona Mauga in House 31, Sahara Hayes in House 32, Doug Owens in House 33, Carol Spackman Moss in House 34, Rosalba Dominguez in House 35, Ashlee Ann Matthews in House 37, Andrew Stoddard in House 40 and Gay Lynn Bennion in House 41.
What that means is that the balance of power is unchanged in the Legislature – Republicans still hold a super majority.
But Democrats are consoling themselves that at least they weren’t blown-out by the massive red wave that emerged in the general election balloting to capture the White House, the Senate and probably the House at the federal level.
Lewis credits that success to Democratic supporters who persuading voters to turn out to the polls with door knocking, texting and phone banking efforts.
“Although we are disappointed in the results on the national stage,” Lewis acknowledges, “we are committed to upholding our democratic institutions.”
That may be difficult given the mandate that voters gave former President Donald Trump on Nov. 5.
Trump not only won both the popular vote and the electoral college count, but also scored big gains in virtually every demographic group that Democrats have traditionally considered to be part of their base.
Despite being repeatedly labeled by Democrats and their media allies as a convicted felon and an insurrectionist, the former president won big among Latino voters (45 percent – a history making record for a Republican), African-Americans (13 percent, up from 8 percent in 2020), Asians (39 percent), women (46 percent) and young voters (46 percent).
“It is critical that Democrats do not give up hope,” the party chair nevertheless insists.
“Our party defeated the first Trump presidency,” Lewis emphasizes. “We must remain engaged, informed and involved to limit the damage of a second Trump term.”